Holidays and Festivals
National holidays can be rather annoying as a traveller if you don't know about them in advance. Arriving to find all accommodation fully booked with the owner of the only room left in town wanting $US1000 a night for a foam mattress with a view of the neighbours bathroom can be quite a disruption. Equally going to a bus station expecting to buy a ticket on the same day of travel and being told all busses are fully booked for the next 3 days can leave you a little despondent. So here is a little list of national holidays in Brazil as well as various state holidays.
National Holidays in Brazil
| January 01 | Ano Novo (New Year's Day) |
| Febraury/March | Carnaval spelt Carnival in English |
| March/April | Páscoa (Easter) |
| April 21 | Tiradentes Day |
| May 1 | Labor Day |
| May/June | Corpus Christi – 60 days after Easter (Brazil - except Recife) |
| September 7 | Independence Day |
| October 12 | Nossa Senhora de Aparecida |
| November 2 | All Souls Day |
| November 15 | Proclamation of the Republic |
| December 25 | Natal (Christmas Day) |
Other Public Holiday’s in Brazil
| January 20 | São Sebastião Day (Rio de Janeiro) |
| January 25 | São Paulo Anniversary (São Paulo) |
| February 2 | N. Sra. dos Navegantes(Porto Alegre) |
| June 24 | São João Day (Recife) |
| July 9 | São Paulo State Day (São Paulo) |
| July 16 | N. Sra. do Carmo Day (Recife) |
| August 15 | Assumption Day (Belo Horizonte) |
| September 20 | Farroupilha Day (Porto Alegre) |
| October 2 | Merchants Day (Recife) |
| November 20 | Zumbi dos Palmares (Rio) |
| November 30 | Evangelicals Day (Brasília) |
| December 8 | Immaculate Conception (Belém, Belo Horizonte and Recife) |
Although not officially holidays if you miss any of these dates you’ll be sleeping on the lounge.
| May | 2nd Sunday is Mother´s day |
| June 12 | Dia dos Namorados (Valentines Day) |
| August | 2nd Sunday is father´s day |