Global Holiday Calendar 2023-2024: Images and Design Direction

Never miss a special occasion or holiday with our global 2023 calendar with holidays. Locate all the images, color palettes, clip art, and design direction you need for any holiday’s creative assets.

‘Tis the season for … everything. Thanks to globalization, social media, and even just a need for celebration and connection after a tough few years, both big and small holidays have taken on global significance. The same is true for “that’s a real thing?” sort of commemorations, like National Pizza Day (February 9) or National Daughter’s Day (September 25.) 

Holidays are the rhythm and backdrop of the year. Finding the right imagery to match your message can go a long way in catching the eyes of customers and clients. 

Here are some major holidays to consider in your marketing. Of course, this isn’t an exhaustive list. While some holidays get a huge amount of attention, it may be worthwhile to explore lesser-known celebrations that align with your audience and message. After all, why not turn every day into a celebration? 

Explore our list of holiday creative resources below!

Winter Holidays Around the World  

New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day

As the calendar turns to January 1, many cultures around the world celebrate New Year. But it’s key to be aware of different traditions. While countries in the Northern Hemisphere may imagine celebrating the New Year bundled up and anticipating freshly-fallen snow, warmer weather countries are likely celebrating with an all night beach party. 

Lunar New Year

Lunar New Year always takes place on the second new moon of the winter solstice. This means the timing of the holiday can vary between mid-January and mid-February. Celebrated in China, South Korea, Vietnam, and other countries with a large Chinese population, Lunar New Year is celebrated with food, fireworks, and festivities. 

Valentine’s Day

Valentine’s Day on February 14th is known for roses, candlelit dinners, Cupid, and couples exchanging kisses. It’s also become a popular day to celebrate friends (have you heard of Galentine’s Day?!) and love in all its forms. Different countries celebrate love on different days. Many South Koreans celebrate love on the fourteenth of every month. Some parts of Spain celebrate love on October 9th, the day of St. Dionysus. 

Spring Holidays Around the World

St. Patrick’s Day

Everyone’s Irish on March 17th! This day of celebration is actually the death date of St. Patrick, the patron Saint of Ireland. Today, it has become a way to celebrate Irish heritage with drinking, parades, and parties. While St. Patrick’s Day might be the most well-known global Saint Day, there are others that have important national significance. 

Earth Day

More and more companies use the month of April to spotlight environmental initiatives. In fact, Earth Day is a global celebration. It marks the anniversary of the modern environmental movement and first observed in 1970. Today, nearly 200 countries mark this day—the largest secular observance in the world—as a day to stand up and fight for a cleaner environment for ourselves and future generations.

Easter

The Christian holiday has become a worldwide celebration of spring. Christians commemorate this day to remember the resurrection of Jesus. Today, the holiday is celebrated secularly as well, with chocolate, egg hunts, and images of bunnies, chicks, and other signs of spring. 

Passover

This Jewish holiday celebrates the Biblical story of how Israelites escaped from Egyptian slavery. Lasting for eight days, the Passover holiday is widely observed and is celebrated with two traditional meals called seders. These ceremonial meals celebrate family, friends, connection, and triumph over adversity.

Eid

A major Islamic holiday, Eid celebrations change each year, based on the lunar calendar. Eid celebrates the conclusion of Ramadan, a month-long holy period marked by fasting and prayer. Eid celebrations are joyful, marked by community, food, and fun. 

Holi

Celebrated at the end of March, this joyful Hindu festival is marked by lights, fires, and plenty of color. Colorful powders are often played with and thrown. People celebrate the start of spring, the triumph of good over evil, and the divine love of the god Radha Krishna.

Cinco de Mayo

The 5th of May is a celebration that honors the victory of Mexican forces against the French in 1862. Now, it’s become a worldwide celebration of Mexican culture, celebrated with food, drinks, and friends. 

Mother’s Day

Occurring in different countries on different days, Mother’s Day is a late spring holiday. On this day, we commemorate moms of all types, including grandmas and other mom-like role models.

Memorial Day

Memorial Day honors American soldiers who have passed. It occurs during the last Monday in May. Other countries have their own days of honoring and commemorating soldiers, many of which also occur in late spring and early summer. For example, Australia and New Zealand have Anzac Day on April 25th, and the Dutch have a Remembrance Day on May 4th. The American holiday is also the unofficial kick-off to summer.

Summer Holidays Around the World

Father’s Day

A day to celebrate dads, Father’s Day is the third Sunday in June in the United States. 

Pride Month

The entire month of June is designated as LGBTQ+ Pride Month. Pride honors the 1969 Stonewall Uprising, where a violent clash with police at gay bar in Manhattan sparked the gay liberation movement. Today, companies use the month to spotlight diversity and inclusion, push for acceptance and policy reform, and celebrate love, acceptance, and identity. While the American Pride Month is in June, Pride Month timings may vary based on geography. For example, in Southern Hemisphere countries, many Pride events are celebrated during the winter. 

Fall Holidays Around the World

Rosh Hashanah

The Jewish New Year is celebrated by Jews all over the world. The holiday is filled with worship, meals, and reflection over the year that passed and the new one about to begin. The date of this holiday changes each year, based on the Hebrew Calendar. 

Yom Kippur

Ten days after the start of Rosh Hashanah is Yom Kippur. A solemn day of prayer and fasting, this holiday is commemorated by worship during the day and a meal with family and friends after.

Halloween

October 31 has become a day of dressing up, eating candy, and having fun. While the holiday became popular in the United States and Canada, many other countries have begun partaking in the fun of dressing up. Halloween-type celebrations may be found on different days in different countries. For example, in Denmark and other Nordic countries, Fastelavn is celebrated in late February or early March. This holiday also features cute kid costumes and candy, but commemorates the start of Lent.

Día de Los Muertos

Traditionally celebrated on November 1 or November 2, this Mexican celebration is a time to remember and celebrate lost loved ones.

Guy Fawkes Day

The fifth of November, also known as Bonfire Night. This is a U.K. holiday celebrating a foiled plot to blow up the House of Parliament in seventeenth century England. This night is celebrated by bonfires and fireworks. 

Diwali

The festival of lights in Hindu, Sikh, and Jain culture is celebrated in October or November each year, depending on the calendar. Celebrating light over darkness, this holiday is commemorated by lights, food, and fireworks. The length of the celebration varies. In India, it’s a five-day festival, but the third night is the main celebration, during which many expat communities celebrate with parties and fireworks. Homes and patios are often decorated with intricate geometric designs made of sand, flowers, or colored rice, making the celebration beautiful and colorful. 

Thanksgiving

Celebrated in the United States and Canada (but on different days), Thanksgiving is a federal holiday honoring family and friends. Turkey traditionally takes center stage in an all-day feast. More and more though, families celebrate Thanksgiving with turkey trot 5k races, getting outside, and giving back to their communities. 

Hanukkah

An 8-day festival of lights in the Jewish tradition, Hanukkah occurs anywhere between the end of November and the end of December, based on the Jewish calendar. Hanukkah celebrates the miracle of the reclamation of the Holy Temple in Israel from the Greeks. The festival is centered on lighting the Menorah each evening. Usually, children are given gifts, games are played, and meals are shared with family and friends. Because Hanukkah celebrates the miracle of one day’s supply of oil lasting for eight days to light the temple, foods fried in oils, like latkes and donuts, take center stage. 

Kwanzaa

As an American holiday founded 1966, this harvest celebration derives its name from a Swahili word that roughly translates to “first fruits.” This six day festival starts on December 26th and runs until the New Year. The holiday is secular, and it’s celebrated by families with African origin in the United States, in the Caribbean, and around the globe. Each day centers around a specific principle, like purpose or creativity. It is a time to light candles, spend time together, and enjoy meals. 

Winter Solstice

The winter solstice is commemorated by different names in different countries. For example, Scandinavian countries often commemorate the solstice by observing St. Lucy’s Day. This day is a festival of lights where traditional baked goods are enjoyed, songs are sung, and families celebrate the season.

Christmas

Commemorating the birth of Christ, Christmas has evolved into a secular celebration of family, friends, and the end of the year. Traditions vary based on country, culture, and climate! Christmas is always a safe bet to focus on togetherness and gift-giving.

2024 Calendar With Holidays

How to Create Custom Holiday Images

Because there are multiple global holidays occurring almost every month, it’s important to use their appropriate imagery, colors, and messaging in your creative projects. This doesn’t need to be complicated. Of course, you can browse Shutterstock’s extensive image and video libraries to find your perfect photos, videos, illustrations, and more! Alternatively, if your image doesn’t exist yet, you can generate it with AI. Our AI image generator allows users to create at the speed of their imaginations by creating any image with a bit of text. Try it now to create something new and totally unique for your next holiday campaign!

If you’re looking to further customize content, Shutterstock’s Create tool makes it simple. Access all the images and editing tools you need to create stunning assets in seconds. Provided calendar templates and greeting card templates can truly allow your business to make every day count.

Happy holiday, no matter which holiday you’re celebrating!

Make every day stand out using these content insights:

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