School-Holidays.info has published an article about school holidays in Japan for the year 2023. The article provides information on the start and end dates of the holidays, as well as the difference between regular, international, and language schools. Additionally, the article includes a list of holidays in 2023 when Japanese schoolchildren have days off.
School Holidays in Japan 2023
The school year in Japanese schools starts in spring, in April, which corresponds to local traditions and symbolizes a new beginning. However, in recent years, some private schools have switched to a different system of education, where the school year starts at the end of August or beginning of September and ends at the end of June.
For the convenience of readers, we provide the dates of school holidays in Japan for the year 2023 in chronological order:
- Winter holidays: from December 26, 2022 to January 6, 2023;
- End of the school year: March 24, 2023;
- Spring holidays: from March 25 to April 2, 2023;
- First day of school: April 3, 2023;
- Summer holidays: from July 20 to August 31, 2023;
- Winter holidays: from December 25, 2023 to January 7, 2024.
Holidays in Japanese International Schools
In international schools in Japan, the academic year usually starts in August and ends in June, unlike traditional schools. For example, at Yokohama International School, the academic year 2022-2023 ends on June 16, and the new year 2023-2024 starts on August 21. At Nagoya International School, it’s June 20 and August 22, respectively.
Each educational institution chooses its own schedule, including the start and end dates of vacations, days off, and holidays. This information can be found on the official website of the international school, the address of which is in the full list of international educational institutions in Japan.
Holidays in Japanese Language Schools
Japanese language schools do not follow a general schedule of school vacations, but are managed by their own administration. The academic year in language schools is divided into two semesters, and in the middle of each semester, there are semester breaks, in addition to the main school vacations. The beginning of the academic year in language schools falls in April, as in regular schools.
The duration of holidays in language schools usually ranges from two to four weeks. Semester breaks rarely exceed two weeks. Vacations in Japanese language schools are set for the following periods:
- Spring holidays: March-April;
- Summer holidays: June-July;
- Autumn holidays: September-October;
- Winter holidays: December-January.
Please note that vacation dates in language schools may vary depending on the specific school and its schedule. Therefore, if you plan to study at a Japanese language school, be sure to check with the school administration for holidays dates for the current academic year.
Other Days Off in Japanese Schools in 2023
In Japan, in addition to school vacations, there are also specail days when students do not attend classes. In total, there are 9 national holidays in the country, but some educational institutions, mostly private and international, may set days off on other significant dates.
The main national holidays in Japan in 2023 are:
- January 9 – Coming of Age Day;
- February 11 – National Foundation Day;
- March 21 – Vernal Equinox Day;
- May 3 – Constitution Memorial Day;
- September 19 – Respect for the Aged Day;
- September 23 – Autumnal Equinox Day;
- October 10 – Sports Day;
- November 3 – Culture Day;
- November 23 – Labor Thanksgiving Day.
Useful Links
- Education system in Japan;
- List of international schools in Japan;
- Official website of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan (in Japanese).
In this article, we provided information about school holidays in different types of schools in Japan in 2023. We wrote a vacation calendar and a list of holidays. If this publication was useful for you, be sure to share it with your friends!
