Colombia Holiday Weekends: 12 October, 2 and 16 November
EXPATS & NOMADS · COLOMBIA
Key Facts
- —Dates Monday 12 October, Monday 2 November and Monday 16 November 2026, each closing a three-day weekend (10 to 12 October, 31 October to 2 November, 14 to 16 November).
- —Why Monday Colombia’s Ley Emiliani (Law 51 of 1983) moves most holidays to the following Monday; All Saints moves from Sunday 1 November and Cartagena’s independence day from Wednesday 11 November.
- —Closed Bank branches and most government offices. ATMs, banking apps, airports, buses and most shops, restaurants and malls keep running.
- —Bogotá rules Regular pico y placa does not apply on the holiday, but the regional entry restriction runs on each final Monday from noon to 8 p.m. Ciclovía opens 7 a.m. to 2 p.m.
- —For US visitors No visa for stays of up to 90 days. Fill in the free Check-MIG form between 72 hours and one hour before your flight.
Three holiday Mondays in six weeks turn October and November into Colombia’s busiest stretch of domestic travel before Christmas. Here is what closes, what keeps running and what a US traveller should sort out before landing.
The Colombia festivo long weekends of 2026 still to come fall on Monday 12 October, Monday 2 November and Monday 16 November. Each one creates a three-day weekend, known locally as a puente, and each one moves millions of Colombians onto the roads, into the airports and out to the coast or the coffee region at the same time.
For a US visitor or a newly arrived remote worker, the practical effect is simple. Flights and hotels fill and get more expensive, bank branches and government offices shut for the Monday, and Bogotá adds a traffic rule for cars driving back into the city. Plan around those three things and a puente is one of the best times to see the country at its most relaxed.
The Three Holiday Weekends Still Ahead in 2026
Colombia has one of the longest lists of public holidays in the Americas, and a 1983 law, known as the Ley Emiliani, moves most of them to the following Monday so that workers get a full three-day break instead of a stray Wednesday off. Regional papers including El Heraldo and El País of Cali list the final three Monday holidays of 2026 as follows.
Saturday 10 to Monday 12 October. The Monday is the Day of Ethnic and Cultural Diversity of the Colombian Nation, the name that replaced the old Día de la Raza. In 2026 the date already falls on a Monday, so nothing needs to move. This is the closest of the three and the one most likely to catch a newly arrived traveller off guard, because it starts this coming Saturday.
Saturday 31 October to Monday 2 November. All Saints’ Day is 1 November, a Sunday this year, so the day off moves to Monday 2 November. The Saturday is also Halloween, which in Colombian cities is largely a children’s costume day in malls and residential buildings, with adult costume parties in the nightlife districts that evening.
Saturday 14 to Monday 16 November. The holiday marks the independence of Cartagena, declared on 11 November 1811. The anniversary itself is a Wednesday, so the national day off moves to Monday 16 November. Cartagena celebrates its independence festivities around the anniversary, which makes this the busiest weekend of the three on the Caribbean coast.
After that, only two holidays remain in 2026, and neither moves: the Immaculate Conception on Tuesday 8 December, which many people bridge by taking Monday 7 December off, and Christmas Day on Friday 25 December. If you followed our planner for Colombia’s June Holiday Mondays: An Expat Planner, the pattern is the same, just with fewer weekends left in the year.
What Closes and What Stays Open
Banks. Branches close on the holiday Monday. Bancolombia and Banco Agrario have said there will be no in-person service on 12 October anywhere in the country, with branches reopening on Tuesday 13 October, according to Colombian press reports. ATMs, banking apps and correspondent agents in shops keep working. If you need a teller, for example to open an account or deal with a blocked card, do it the Friday before.
Government offices. Most public offices, including those that handle residency paperwork, do not open on the holiday. Health, police, emergency and transport services keep working on shift rotas. Any appointment you hold for a Monday that turns out to be a festivo will need rebooking.
Shops, restaurants and malls. Most stay open, often on Sunday hours. Supermarkets and pharmacies in the big cities trade normally. Smaller family businesses and offices in business districts tend to close, so central Bogotá and El Poblado in Medellín feel quieter than usual on the Monday.
Museums in Bogotá. Check before you go, because Monday closures do not always lift on a holiday. The Banco de la República’s Museo del Oro opens Tuesday to Saturday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and on Sundays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., with free entry for everyone on Sundays, and it is closed on Mondays; the city’s tourism office confirms that includes holiday Mondays. The bank also warns of intermittent closures of the permanent exhibition rooms from 6 October to 6 November 2026 for renovation work, which covers the first two holiday weekends.
Payments. Card payments and app transfers keep working through the weekend, but press reports note that some operations are only reflected according to each bank’s own processing times, which in practice can mean the next working day. Pay rent or invoices due on the 1st or the 15th of the month early.
Getting Around Bogotá on a Holiday Monday
Bogotá’s weekday pico y placa rule, which keeps private cars off the road on alternate days by the last digit of the number plate between 6 a.m. and 9 p.m., does not apply on Saturdays, Sundays or holidays. What does apply is the regional version on the last day of every long weekend, aimed at the wave of cars returning to the capital.
According to the city government, on Monday 12 October and on the final day of each puente, only private cars with plates ending in an even number (0, 2, 4, 6, 8) may enter Bogotá between noon and 4 p.m. on the nine main entry corridors. From 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. only odd plates (1, 3, 5, 7, 9) may enter. Before noon and after 8 p.m. there is no restriction. If you rent a car for a trip out of the city, check the plate and plan your return slot, or simply drive back in the morning.
The upside of a holiday Monday in Bogotá is the Ciclovía. The city closes about 141 kilometres of main roads to cars every Sunday and every holiday from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., according to the city’s sports and recreation institute IDRD, so a puente gives you two Ciclovía mornings in a row. Carrera Séptima past the Museo Nacional is one of the easiest stretches to join.
On the roads out of the big cities, expect heavy traffic on the Friday evening and Saturday morning heading out, and again on the Monday afternoon heading back. Police step up checkpoints on main highways during long weekends, so keep your passport and, if driving, your licence and rental papers with you.
Tips for US and Foreign Visitors
Entry. The US State Department says US citizens do not need a visa for tourism or business stays of up to 90 days, and can ask Migración Colombia for a 90-day extension before the first period runs out. The passport must be valid for the length of the stay (six months is recommended) and have one blank page for the entry stamp. Cash and other instruments above US$10,000 must be declared on entry and exit.
Check-MIG. Migración Colombia’s Check-MIG pre-registration form is free and can be filled in between 72 hours and one hour before your flight, into or out of Colombia. The agency itself describes the form as not mandatory, while the State Department tells US travellers to complete it. Do it anyway: it shortens the interview at passport control, and holiday weekends are when the halls at El Dorado and Rafael Núñez are busiest. Use only the official migracioncolombia.gov.co site: the agency says all its forms are free and, replying to a complaint about an impersonating site, tells travellers to go directly to its own website.
Safety. The State Department’s Colombia advisory, issued on 31 March 2026, is at Level 3, “reconsider travel”, and lists Arauca, Cauca (except Popayán), Valle del Cauca (except Cali) and Norte de Santander, as well as the area within 10 kilometres of the Venezuelan border, as Level 4, “do not travel”. Popular puente destinations such as Cartagena, Santa Marta, Villa de Leyva and the coffee region are outside those zones, but the usual city precautions apply: book taxis through an app, keep your phone out of sight on the street and watch your drink in bars.
Costs and bookings. Domestic flights and beach hotels are priced for demand on long weekends, so compare fares for the Friday and Saturday against a Thursday departure, and book coast hotels early for the 14 to 16 November weekend. If you are flying in from the US for the holiday season, United plans to start a Washington Dulles to Cartagena route on 17 December, subject to government approval; see United Adds a Nonstop Dulles to Cartagena Flight in December.
Remote workers. If your employer or clients are in the US, remember that a Colombian holiday is a normal working day in New York or Chicago. Coworking spaces may close or shorten hours, and cafés in residential areas fill up early, so check opening times before relying on them for a Monday call.
What Is Not Confirmed Yet
The holiday dates themselves are fixed by law and are not in doubt. Several details around them are. Individual banks other than Bancolombia and Banco Agrario had not published their own branch schedules for the November holidays when this guide was prepared, and some mall branches open on special hours, so check your own bank’s app.
Bogotá publishes its pico y placa calendar month by month; the October rules are out, while the November calendar is expected near the start of the month and normally repeats the same regional entry rule on 2 and 16 November. Museum and attraction hours can change without notice, and the official programme of Cartagena’s independence festivities should be checked against the city’s own announcements before you book around a specific parade or concert.
Frequently Asked Questions
When are the next long weekends in Colombia in 2026?
The remaining three-day weekends are 10 to 12 October, 31 October to 2 November and 14 to 16 November 2026. The holidays fall on Monday 12 October, Monday 2 November and Monday 16 November.
Are banks open in Colombia on a holiday Monday?
Bank branches close on national holidays and reopen on the Tuesday. ATMs, banking apps and correspondent agents keep working, and some mall branches may open on special hours.
Do US citizens need a visa or Check-MIG to visit Colombia?
US citizens need no visa for stays of up to 90 days. Check-MIG is a free online form filled in between 72 hours and one hour before the flight; the US State Department advises completing it.
Sources: El Heraldo · El País (Cali) · El Cronista Colombia · Alcaldía de Bogotá (pico y placa) · IDRD Ciclovía · Banco de la República, Museo del Oro · Visit Bogotá · Migración Colombia, CheckMig · Migración Colombia, reply on Check-MIG impersonation · US State Department, Colombia.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief