Singapore Festivals and Celebrations

Why this page publishes no dates.

Singapore's public holidays follow the Gregorian, Chinese, Islamic, Hindu and Buddhist calendars at once. Most of the major festivals therefore fall on a different Gregorian date every year, and some are set only when the relevant authority confirms them. A date table on a travel page goes out of date within a year and looks authoritative while it does so.

No source in this cluster research register publishes a festival calendar, so this page names the festivals, explains what moves them, and sends you to the Ministry of Manpower's published public holiday list for the year you are traveling. That list is the one that decides what is closed and what is crowded.

The major observances, and what each one is.

Chinese New Year falls in late January or February on the lunar calendar, runs for two public holidays, and reshapes the city for a fortnight. Chinatown is the center of it and many family businesses close.

Hari Raya Puasa marks the end of Ramadan and moves through the Gregorian year on the Islamic calendar, so over time it passes through every season. The weeks before it turn the Malay quarters into a night market, and Hari Raya Haji follows about two months later.

Deepavali, the festival of lights, falls in October or November and is centered on Little India, which is lit for weeks around it. Thaipusam, in January or February, is a Hindu observance involving a procession between temples and is among the most striking things to witness in this city. Vesak Day marks the Buddha's birth, enlightenment and passing, and falls in May.

Alongside those sit the secular fixtures: National Day on the ninth of August, with a rehearsed parade and weeks of rehearsals visible over the bay beforehand, and a calendar of arts and food events that move for commercial rather than religious reasons.

What a festival does to a trip.

Three practical effects, in order of how much they matter. Hotel rates and flight prices rise around the big ones, and around the school holidays of the countries that supply most of Singapore's visitors. Some businesses close for several days, which is most noticeable during Chinese New Year. And the thing you came to see may only be happening on those dates, which is an argument for planning toward a festival rather than away from one.

Attending respectfully.

Most of these are religious observances that the public is welcome to witness, which is not the same as an event staged for visitors. Dress as you would to enter a place of worship, ask before photographing people, and do not photograph anyone at prayer or in a state of devotion. At a procession, stand where the stewards indicate and stay out of the route.

Two legal rules travel with festival season, both recorded in the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office safety advice. Drinking in a public place is illegal between 10:30pm and 7am outside licensed venues, and Geylang and Little India are Liquor Control Zones where public drinking is banned at weekends and on public holidays. And street gatherings and demonstrations are illegal without police permission, with foreigners who are not permanent residents prohibited from attending outdoor demonstrations and filming an illegal gathering forbidden. A religious procession with the necessary permissions is not a demonstration, and the distinction matters enough to be worth knowing.

Planning around them.

Check the official public holiday list for your year before booking. If a major festival falls in your window, book accommodation earlier than you otherwise would. And remember that the arrival card this cluster's entry guide covers is due in the 3 days before you arrive whatever the calendar is doing.

Sources

• UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: records that violent crime and theft are rare in Singapore, that there are severe penalties for all drug offenses including when transiting through the airport, that foreigners who are not permanent residents are prohibited from attending outdoor demonstrations and that filming an illegal gathering is forbidden, and that drinking in a public place is illegal between 10:30pm and 7am with Liquor Control Zones where it is banned at weekends and on public holidays. Accessed 22 September 2026.
• UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: records that Singapore admits visitors for tourism or business without a visa, that the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority decides who can enter and how long they can stay, that the period of stay is at the discretion of the immigration officer and is normally between 30 and 90 days for British citizens, that an electronic SG Arrival Card must be completed in the 3 days before arrival, and that it is illegal to submit a false declaration. Accessed 22 September 2026.