All federal government offices, post offices and banks close on federal holidays, but private businesses may choose whether or not to observe them. Nearly all states and localities observe the federal holidays, and many also observe additional holidays. If a federal holiday falls on a weekend, the observance is shifted to the nearest weekday (either Friday or Monday), though festivities are held and most store closures occur on the annual date, even if it’s during the weekend.
The time between Thanksgiving (the fourth Thursday in November) and January 1 is called the “holiday season.” Many people take vacations and shop during this period, so airports, roads, bus stations, train stations, malls and department stores are all crowded during this period, especially just before the main holidays and on weekends. Allow extra time, and be patient.
The federal holidays are as follows:
- New Year’s Day (1 January) – most non-retail businesses closed
- Martin Luther King Jr. Day (third Monday in January) – many government offices and banks closed
- Presidents’ Day (third Monday in February), officially called Washington’s Birthday – many government offices and banks closed; some non-retail businesses closed
- Memorial Day (last Monday in May) – most non-retail businesses closed
- Juneteenth (19 June) – most government offices and some non-retail businesses closed
- Independence Day (4 July), known colloquially as the Fourth of July – most non-retail businesses closed
- Labor Day (first Monday in September) – most non-retail businesses closed
- Columbus Day (second Monday in October), alternatively celebrated as Indigenous People’s Day or Italian Heritage Day – many government offices and banks closed
- Veterans Day (11 November) – government offices and banks closed
- Thanksgiving Day (fourth Thursday in November) – airports are extremely crowded on the Wednesday before and Sunday after Thanksgiving; most businesses closed, including grocery stores and many restaurants
- Christmas (25 December) – almost all businesses, grocery stores, and many restaurants closed the evening before and all day; however, many Chinese and Jewish businesses remain open
Other holidays when businesses may close include Good Friday (the Friday before Easter), Easter (a Sunday in March or April) and Halloween (31 October).