Public holidays and festivals
Chile Public Holidays (see below for festivals)
New Year's Day | 1 January | Don't miss the fantastic fireworks display in and around Valparaiso. |
Easter | 22-24 April | |
Labour Day | 1 May | Public holiday with the largest number of shops and services closed! |
Navy Day | 21 May | Commemorates the Battle of Iquique in 1879. The President also gives his annual speech to Congress |
Saint Peter and Saint Paul | 27 June | |
Virgen of Mount Carmel | 16 July | Chile´s patron saint. |
Assumption of Mary | 15 August | |
National Day | 18 September | Celebrates the first Government Junta convened in 1810. |
Armed Forces Day | 19 September | Parades held in all cities, with the largest in Parque O'Higgins in Santiago (televised). |
Columbus Day (Discovery of America) | 10 October | |
Day of the Evangelical and Protestant Churches | 31 October | |
All Saints Day | 1 November | |
Immaculate Conception | 8 December | |
Christmas | 25 December | |
Bank holiday | 31 December | Banks and other financial institutions are closed. Most other workers finish earlier than normal. |
Yearly Festivals
Many Chilean towns and cities have one (and sometimes more!) festivals to celebrate historic, cultural, gastronomic or other local speciality. Below is a list of some of the most famous ones, but check our events page for exact dates.
January | Easter Island | Fiesta Tapati de Rapa Nui |
February | San Miguel de Azapa, Putre y Socoroma (Arica) | Fuerza del Sol Carnival |
February | Valdivia | Valdivia week |
March | Curicó (Talca) | Grape harvest festival |
April | All | Culture month |
June | Temuco, Concepción | Mapuche New Year |
June | Fishing villages | Festival of San Pedro |
July | La Tirana (Iquique) | Fiesta de La Tirana |
September | All | National Day |
December | Andacollo (Coquimbo) | Festival of the Virgen of Andacollo |