You can now start to get those extra days off even before your colleagues do get, but only if you start planning now.

The year 2017 was the year of long weekends in the UAE. With the year starting off with more than 5 weekends. This year 2018, however does not have that many weekends although we do have the same public holidays.

The next long weekend is going to be:

Arafat Day + Eid Al Adha combined (3 days off + weekend)

August 21 or 22

 This day is most likely to fall on a Tuesday. The Arafat Day will then be followed by Eid Al Adha the next day (Wednesday and Thursday). This means that one could get a 4 days weekend if they end up working on a Saturday as well. But for those that do not work on a Saturday, they get straight 5 days off.

The dates can be subjected to change however depending on moon-sightings. But even if the dates are bound to change, the good news is that you will still experience only a short work week.

Commemoration Day + UAE National Day (Weekend + 1 day off)

November 30 and December 2

 The Commemoration Day this year fall on a Friday, November 30. Either ways, this is still a very long weekend that you can end up planning for and looking forward to.

His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, in 2015 declared the commemoration day in order to honor the Emiratis that had all does while fighting for their nation.

December 2 this year is the UAE’s National Day will be celebrated on Sunday. The UAE was a British Protectorate although it was never a part of the British Empire. This Protectorate treaty was withdrawn on December 1, 1971. Thus it paved the way for the federal unification of the emirates.

The original UAE was made up of Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, and Fujairah with Ras Al Khaimah joining in a year later in 1972.