A practical guide to the end-of-year festive season at work: key dates for 2026–2027, respectful greetings, gifts and scheduling for Diwali, Sinterklaas, Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa and Chinese New Year.
From November to February, international teams move through a remarkable sequence of celebrations. A colleague in Mumbai is preparing for Diwali, a Dutch office is filling shoes with chocolate letters, Jewish colleagues are lighting Hanukkah candles, and suppliers in China are already planning for the Lunar New Year shutdown. Handled well, this season is a wonderful chance to strengthen relationships. Handled carelessly, it can lead to missed deadlines, awkward greetings and colleagues who feel overlooked.
This guide brings together the main festivals of the season, with dates for 2026–2027, and practical advice on greetings, gifts and scheduling. It focuses on respect and inclusion: nobody needs to celebrate everything, but everyone appreciates being noticed.
Festivals shape the business calendar. Offices close, decision-makers travel, factories pause and response times lengthen. They also carry emotional weight: they are about family, faith, memory and identity. Recognising a colleague’s festival, even with a short message, signals cultural intelligence and builds trust that lasts well beyond the season.
Diwali, the festival of lights, is celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and some Buddhists, in India and in diaspora communities worldwide. Homes are lit with lamps, families gather and sweets are shared. Many Indian businesses close for several days, and some mark the start of a new financial year.
In the Netherlands, the evening of 5 December, pakjesavond, is a family celebration of Sinterklaas, with gifts, poems and treats such as chocolate letters and pepernoten. In Belgium, Saint Nicholas Day falls on 6 December, when children traditionally find their presents in the morning. Many Dutch and Belgian workplaces mark the occasion with small surprises or a playful poem exchange. Expect some colleagues to leave early on 5 December. Our guides to Dutch and Belgian business culture explain more about working life in both countries.
Hanukkah, the Jewish festival of lights, begins at sunset on 4 December 2026 and lasts eight nights. It commemorates the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem, and families light one additional candle on the menorah each night, often enjoying fried foods such as latkes and doughnuts. Hanukkah is not the same as a “Jewish Christmas”, and it is a joyful but relatively minor festival in the religious calendar.
Christmas is celebrated in many ways. In Germany, Advent and the Christmas markets shape the whole of December. In Poland, families gather for Wigilia on Christmas Eve. In Mexico, Las Posadas re-enact the journey of Mary and Joseph, while in Venezuela, hallacas are prepared together by the whole family. In Spain, the season continues until Día de Reyes on 6 January, and Orthodox Christians in several countries celebrate Christmas on 7 January.
For business, the week between Christmas and New Year is quiet in much of Europe and the Americas. Neutral messages such as “Season’s greetings” or “Happy holidays” are inclusive choices for mixed audiences, while “Merry Christmas” is perfectly appropriate for colleagues you know celebrate it.
Kwanzaa is a week-long celebration of African heritage and community, created in 1966 by Maulana Karenga and observed mainly by African American families. Each day focuses on one of seven principles, such as unity (Umoja) and collective work and responsibility (Ujima), and candles are lit on a kinara. Kwanzaa is cultural rather than religious, so many people celebrate it alongside Christmas.
The Spring Festival begins on 6 February 2027 and welcomes the Year of the Goat. It is the most important holiday in China and is also celebrated in many other countries, including Vietnam as Tết. Families reunite, red envelopes (hongbao) are exchanged and factories often close for two weeks or more, as workers travel home. Read our guide to Chinese business culture for more.
For mixed or unknown audiences, “Happy holidays” or “Season’s greetings” is inclusive. For colleagues you know celebrate Christmas, “Merry Christmas” is warm and appropriate.
It begins on 6 February 2027. Expect business disruption in China for one to two weeks or more around this date.
Modest gifts are appreciated in many cultures, but check company policies and local customs, as rules on gifts differ widely.
The festive season is a chance to show respect for the people you work with. Knowing the dates, the greetings and the customs helps you plan better and connect more deeply. Explore all our celebrations guides, or discover your own cultural intelligence with the CQ Brindo Sphere assessment.
Written by
Culture XI Editorial TeamThe Culture XI Editorial Team researches and writes our guides to cultures, celebrations, weddings and cultural intelligence. Each article draws on published research and reputable sources, which we cite on the page. We update articles when we find newer or better sources.
