Business travel in Asia fails for calendar reasons more often than for visa reasons. The flight is fine; the counterparty is not in the building. This guide ranks 2026 weeks by how many of twelve markets — China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines, the United States and the United Kingdom — are simultaneously thin, and what a planner should do instead. Dates follow the gazettes compiled on this site; company shutdowns (Japanese Obon, Indonesian cuti bersama extensions) can still widen a window after you book.
How to read the ranking
“Worst” means you should not fly for deal-making, factory acceptance or joint workshops. “Awkward” means one or two markets are off while others are open — usable if you only need the open side. “Clear” means no major multi-country collision; local single days still exist. Always confirm the destination country page the week you ticket.
The worst collision weeks of 2026
| Week (Mon–Sun) | Who is out | Booking verdict |
|---|---|---|
| 16–22 February | Mainland China Spring Festival block (15–23 Feb); HK/MO 17–19; Taiwan through the festival week; Korea Seollal 16–18; Singapore CNY 17–18; Vietnam Tết; US Presidents’ Day Mon 16 | Do not fly for work. Finish signatures by 6–10 February. |
| 27 April – 3 May | Japan Showa Day 29 Apr; China Labour Day block begins Fri 1 May; Vietnam Liberation Day 30 Apr + Labour Day 1 May; Thailand Coronation Day 4 May sits on the edge; GB Early May Bank Holiday Mon 4 May | Worst North Asia overlap of the year with the following week. |
| 4–10 May | China still in 1–5 May; Japan Golden Week 3–6 May (substitute Wed 6 May); Korea Children’s Day Tue 5 May; Thailand Coronation Day Mon 4 May; GB Early May Mon 4 May | No joint CN–JP–KR itinerary. Defer to week of 11 May. |
| 28 September – 4 October | China Mid-Autumn residue then National Day 1–7 Oct; Korea Chuseok 24–26 Sep then Foundation Day substitute 5 Oct; Japan Sports Day Mon 12 Oct follows; Taiwan Double Ten week | Avoid mainland China inbound; Korea/Taiwan only with local hosts confirmed. |
| 21–27 December | Christmas Day Fri 25 Dec across KR, SG, ID, PH, US, GB, HK, MO; UK Boxing Day Sat 26 + substitute Mon 28; many Western offices already on PTO from Mon 21 | Asia ex-China still works mid-week; US/UK decision-makers do not. |
Awkward but workable weeks
30 March – 5 April. Good Friday Fri 3 April hits Singapore, Hong Kong, Macau, Indonesia, the Philippines and the UK; Philippines also has Maundy Thursday 2 April; China Qingming 4–6 April. A Tokyo or Seoul trip still works; a Manila–Hong Kong dual stop does not. Ship Thai freight before Songkran in the following fortnight.
13–19 April. Thailand Songkran 13–15 April. Offices and domestic logistics pause; tourist beaches do not equal open government counters. Vietnam and Singapore are largely available that week — use them, or wait until 20 April for Bangkok.
17–23 March. Indonesia Nyepi Thu 19 March closes Bali airports; Hari Raya Puasa Sat 21 March affects Singapore and Indonesia. Java and Singapore desks may be thin around Eid even when Bali is the only total blackout. Rebook any Denpasar connection off the 19th.
24–30 August. Singapore National Day Sun 9 Aug + holiday Mon 10 Aug is earlier; mid/late August is Japanese Obon by company custom (Mountain Day Tue 11 Aug is the only nearby statutory day), Korea Liberation Day substitute Mon 17 Aug, Indonesia Independence Day Mon 17 Aug. Confirm Japanese hosts individually.
21–27 September. Japan Respect for the Aged Day Mon 21, citizens’ holiday Tue 22, Autumnal Equinox Wed 23; Korea Chuseok 24–26; China Mid-Autumn 25–27. Wednesday–Thursday 23–24 September is the only thin overlap for Japan–China joint work before both sides peel into festival mode.
Clearer windows for multi-city trips
- Late January (after MLK Day week): US back; Asia not yet in chunyun peak. Good for mainland China inbound before Spring Festival wind-down.
- Second half of June (after Dragon Boat / Juneteenth week): China Dragon Boat is 19–21 June; Juneteenth Fri 19 June hits the US. From about 22 June into early July (before US Independence observed Fri 3 July) is usable for North Asia.
- Mid-November (avoid US Thanksgiving week ending 26 Nov): Japan Culture Day is Tue 3 Nov; Singapore Deepavali Sun 8 / Mon 9 Nov in lieu. Mid-month Japan–Korea–Singapore loops work if you skip Manila around 1–2 November.
- Early March and mid-October (after Golden Weeks): First full weeks after Spring Festival restart and after China National Day are backlog weeks for hosts — prefer the second week for audits.
Booking habits that survive 2026
- Ticket refundable fares into any week that touches Lunar New Year, Golden Week/Labour Day, or China National Day.
- Put the host’s named availability in the calendar invite before you buy the hotel — public holidays are necessary but not sufficient.
- Never schedule a dual-city China–Japan workshop between 29 April and 6 May 2026.
- Treat Singapore Vesak (31 May / 1 June in lieu) and Hari Raya Haji (27 May) as separate from Buddha’s Birthday in Korea/Hong Kong (24–25 May).
- Build coverage with the coverage-calendar method so travel and on-call do not fail the same week.
Mechanism deep-dives: China tiaoxiu, China–Japan gaps, Lunar New Year lengths, Southeast Asia windows, substitute rules, US federal holidays. Country tables: CN, HK, TW, JP, KR, SG, TH, VN, ID, PH, US, GB.
Islamic dates, Thai bridge days and Indonesian collective leave can still move after you read this. Re-check MOM, Cabinet and presidential notices before you lock non-refundable tickets. Editorial method: how we compile dates.
Sample itineraries that respect the calendar
Shenzhen + Hanoi manufacturing audit. Do not ticket the week of 16 February. Prefer 9–13 March after both sides clear backlog, or late January before chunyun peaks. Avoid 30 April–5 May when Vietnam and China overlap on Liberation Day and Labour Day.
Tokyo + Seoul product review. Skip 29 April–6 May entirely. September’s Japan block (21–23) and Korea’s Chuseok (24–26) leave almost no joint day — meet in the week of 14 September or wait until early October after Chuseok but before you need mainland China (National Day 1–7 October).
Singapore hub week with Bangkok and Manila side trips. Keep Songkran (13–15 April) and Holy Week (2–3 April) off the Bangkok and Manila legs respectively. Vesak week at end of May is a Singapore pause (31 May / 1 June in lieu) while Bangkok may still be workable — reverse the usual hub logic that week.
US West Coast + Hong Kong fundraising. Avoid 16 February (Presidents’ Day inside Lunar New Year) and Thanksgiving week. Early March and mid-June (after Dragon Boat / Juneteenth) are cleaner. Do not schedule the Hong Kong government-facing meeting on 17–19 February.
Visa, consular and hotel footnotes
Consular sections often observe both sending and receiving holidays, so appointment capacity disappears for reasons that match neither city’s private-sector calendar. Build a two-week buffer before any trip that needs a new visa stamp during February, early May or early October. Hotels near factories empty out during Lunar New Year while city-centre festival hotels sell out — budget the opposite of tourist intuition when the trip is an audit.
Refundable fares cost more and save more in 2026 than in a quiet year. The collision density from February through early May is high enough that one Cabinet bridge day or one plant restart slip will strand a non-refundable ticket. Pay for flexibility on those months; save the non-refundable deals for late January and mid-November clear windows.