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With today’s hustle culture, week-long holidays that we all grew up with are hard to come by. What we do manage to get instead are long weekends where one can plan and maximise the leaves available. If you are looking to plan a holiday in 2025, these long weekends are your best friends. Long weekends in 2025 are plenty, and with just a little planning, you can easily enjoy 50+ holidays in the year. One can easily plan a great domestic holiday in 2025 on any of these long weekends. International trips to far-off lands might be difficult to squeeze in, but smaller trips can also be managed well.
Here are the best long weekends in 2025 that you should plan vacations for
January
The first of the long weekends in 2025 is in January. It starts on January 11th, which is a Saturday, the 12th is Sunday, the 13th is Lohri, and the 14th is Pongal/Makar Sankranti. The first set of holidays 2025, the January long weekend is perfect no matter what kind of a trip you’re planning. If you want to explore a winter wonderland, a quick trip to the mountains is perfect for this.
If you’re headed to Himachal, we suggest exploring a lesser touristy area like Tirthan. For Kashmir, this is a great time to visit Pahalgam, as it is snowing heavily and you can enjoy a variety of snow activities. If you’re closer to the seven sisters, Meghalaya is a great option. Especially the Dawki River region as the very clear pictures that keep doing the rounds on social media are only possible in the winter season.
February
Shortest of the long weekends in 2025, mid-February is perfect for a quick romantic holiday in 2025. If you can take an off on the 14th of February, which happens to be Friday, this weekend you can relax with your partner in what is easily the best weather in the entire year. A long drive to relaxing destinations is perfect for this. If you’re in Bengaluru and neighbouring regions, head to Ayurveda resorts in Kerala. If you’re in Gujarat, Daman and Diu are great options, and if you’re in and around Kolkata, explore these weekend trips from the city of Joy.
March
March has 2 long weekends in 2025. One which is sure, and will be packed, so we suggest planning much before the dates. Holika Dahan falls on a Thursday, March 13th. The next day, Dhulandhi is Friday, and combined with Saturday-Sunday, the Holi weekend is perfect for a trip like no other. If you’re planning a culturally experiential holiday in 2025, this is a great time to explore the best places to enjoy Holi.
The second weekend is a bit tentative. Eid-Ul-Fitr is expected to be celebrated on March 31st, which is a Monday. Coupled with the weekend, this can also be a short getaway.
April
April 2025 holidays came prepared. Starting from Thursday, April 10th, Mahavir Jayanti will be a holiday, Friday you might have to fake sickness, April 12th and 13th is the weekend, and Monday, April 14th is Dr Ambedkar Jayanti. This is one of the long weekends in 2025 where you can squeeze in an international trip. Our pick for this will be Bhutan. The weather will be perfect, and given that all of these days will be working in Bhutan, you can explore a variety of monuments, museums, and other tourist attractions.
The next set of April 2025 holidays will be the Good Friday weekend, from April 18th to 20th, but it’s obviously much shorter. This will be perfect however for a relaxing weekend in, at a staycation of your choice.
May-June-July
Unfortunately for these months, there aren’t any long weekends in 2025. May 2025 holidays can still be managed if a short trip on the Buddha Poornima works for you. This is a good time to explore hill stations as the summers will be peaking. You must plan beforehand, however. With the summer holidays 2025 falling in the same months, there will be a lot more families travelling during this time.
In the North, explore places like Sirmaur and Bir in Himachal, Munsiyari and Mukteshwar in Uttarakhand, and Gurez Valley in Kashmir. In the Northeast, explore Sikkim, where attractions like Nathu La and Gurudongmar Lake will be great to witness. In the South, head to offbeat hill stations like Yellagiri in Tamil Nadu, or explore great coffee in Araku Valley, Andhra Pradesh.
August
Wouldn’t be wrong to say that Independence Day weekend is one of the most looked up when it comes to the list of long weekends each year. Long weekends in 2025 aren’t any different. Independence Day this year falls on a Friday, making it perfect for a short weekend trip.
We aren’t asking you to ignore the importance of the national festival. But if you intend to make use of your long weekends in 2025, and be patriotic, travel can be a great tool for this. If you’re in Gujarat, head to Sabarmati; if you’re in the Northeast, head to Mawlynnong; in Punjab and Haryana, make a trip to Amritsar, in Tamil Nadu, visit Cholamandal Artists' Village, and so on.
September
Another of the short and sweet long weekends in 2025, September’s first weekend, coupled with Friday, September 5th, celebrating Id-e-Milad/Onam is great for a staycation. The weather is perfect for a romantic staycation in hill stations in Maharashtra. If exploring is more your style of travel, check out India's cave systems that’ll make you marvel at nature’s wonders.
October
The big daddy of long weekends in 2025 is here. The weather is perfect, the holidays are plenty, and with an off here and there, October gives you two big opportunities for holidays 2025. The first is the Dussehra long weekend. October 1st is Navami, October 2nd is Dussehra/Gandhi Jayanti, October 3rd is Friday where you’ll plead your boss for an off, and then it’s the weekend. Now, this is one of the longest weekends in 2025, and you can make plans for international trips as well, but there are many places in India that celebrate Dussehra wonderfully, and this would be a great time to explore them.
If an international trip is a must however, we recommend reserving it for the October’s second of the long weekends in 2025, Diwali. Starting from the 18-19th October weekend, 20th is Diwali, 21st can be a holiday depending on where you live, 22nd is Bhai Dooj, 23rd you’ll have to take an off, and then the next weekend arrives! Whether it is Vietnam, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Madagascar, or whatever it is that is high on your travel bucket list, this is just the perfect time.
December
Sadly, for all the leaves you take to enjoy the October set of long weekends of 2025, you’ll have to slog it off in November. December however will again delight you. Christmas falls on Thursday this year, and will just one off in the middle, you’ll get a great 4 day-long weekend in December. Also perfect for enjoying destinations that celebrate Christmas with grandeur.
If we can manage to be just a bit delusional, and hope that we can get a leave for the 29th and 30th of December, you’ll manage to venture into 2026 in a double long weekend. Might as well try!