As the buzz of "Festival of Colours" starts to creep into the background, a veneer of uncertainty emerges on official dates of Holi 2026. Amidst a Hindu lunar calendar that causes Gregorian date changes in various places, millions of students and parents are asking questions that go deeper than simply what dates to observe: When is the day of play, and even more significant, when will the schools be closed? As you all know to clear the clouds, Holi will be celebrated on Wednesday, March 4, 2026, while Holika Dahan is performed on Tuesday, March 3.
The Holi 2026 Calendar: Decoding the Dates. Usually, confusion springs from the Purnima Tithi (full moon). Phalguna Purnima starts on the night of March 2 and ends on March 3 in 2026. As a result, the holy bonfire of Holika Dahan is on the evening of March 3 (Tuesday).
The next day is called March 4 (Wednesday), celebrated as Rangwali Holi (Dhulandi), the main day when people play with colors and water. This means the festival's main gazetted holiday for schools will fall on Wednesday, March 4. Most educational institutions and governmental offices throughout the country will remain closed for this day to allow families to celebrate and get in on it.
State-Wise School Holiday Updates
UP, Bihar and Delhi For the National Holiday of March 4, state governments have changed their academic calendars in order to take more time off.
- Uttar Pradesh: The UP State Education Department shared an academic calendar that briefly ignited some argument. March 1 (Sunday) is a weekly holiday, and March 4 is, after all, a fully confirmed Holi holiday, but there has not been clarity regarding March 3. Private schools in Noida and Lucknow will also have to declare March 3 a holiday too for Holika Dahan equating to a four-day weekend, which will be from Sunday.
- Bihar: The Bihar Education Department has been more stringent and declared an official two-day holiday for schools on March 3 and 4. This will permit students throughout the state to observe not just the religious rites of bonfire but the social celebrations this very day.
- Delhi: Most schools will observe a gazetted holiday on March 4 according to instructions given by the Directorate of Education (DoE) at the national capital. But a number of elite private schools have also instituted March 3 as a “Restricted Holiday” or a preparatory leave day.
More Holidays in March 2026
Holi is but the first holiday of the month for students – and a festive one at a stretch. After the colors of Holi, the spring academic calendar of March 2026 has several notable breaks.
- March 21 (Saturday): Eid al-Fitr (Moon watching only).
- March 26 (Thursday): Ram Navami.
- March 31 (Tuesday): Mahavir Jayanti.
As the final examination season is typically in March, these holidays often deliver a relief for students. Parents should make sure to keep in close contact with school administrations, as local district collectors usually have the power to create additional “local holidays” depending on regional traditions and safety requirements tied up with that month of March.
