An APAC festive marketing calendar has to be built market by market, because the region's big seasons fall on different dates, run for different lengths and reward different messages. Deepavali falls on 8 November 2026 in India and Singapore, Lunar New Year starts on 6 February 2027, and the Philippine Christmas season begins on 1 September. Plan each build window from local data.
Key takeaways
- Festive dates differ by market, even for the same festival: Buddha's Birthday is a 13 May 2027 holiday in Hong Kong, while Vesak Day falls on 20 May 2027 in Singapore.
- The build starts well before the day: Google reports that search interest in "Diwali sales" in India started surging as early as August.
- Check that a festive peak repeats before you plan around it; SOMIN's Pepsi India read verified festive peaks across two years.
- The calendar sets the timing, but local whitespace should set the message.
- Take dates from official holiday lists and build windows from your own category data.
Why can't one regional festive plan cover APAC?
One plan cannot cover APAC because the dates, the length of each season and its commercial weight change from market to market. A single regional schedule ends up early in some markets and late in others.
The Philippines is the clearest example. State broadcaster PTV News marks 1 September as the start of the "ber" months and of what it calls the longest Christmas season on earth. A brand that starts its Christmas content in December arrives three months into the Philippine season.
Some dates also move with the moon. India's 2026 holiday list for central government offices in Kerala, published by the Press Information Bureau, marks Id-ul-Fitr as subject to change depending on the sighting of the moon. Even within India the dates can differ: that list puts Id-ul-Fitr on 20 March 2026, while the gazetted holiday list of a central government institute in Dehradun puts it on 21 March. Calendars for Ramadan and Hari Raya need a buffer, not a fixed launch date.
And the commercial stakes differ. Think with Google calls Ramadan the biggest retail window of the year in many markets and reports that it recently drove $144 billion in retail sales across Southeast Asia and the Middle East and North Africa. Double-date sales add their own peaks: Criteo's data for the second half of 2021 showed Southeast Asian retail sales up 453% on 12.12 and 399% on 11.11, with most countries peaking on 11.11 but Vietnam and Indonesia on 12.12.
What are the main festive periods by market?
The table lists the major periods for the next 12 months, with dates only where an official or primary source confirms them. Always re-check moon-dependent dates closer to the time.
| Festive period | Main markets | Verified dates | Planning note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dussehra and Deepavali (Diwali) | India; Deepavali also Singapore | Dussehra 20 October 2026 (India); Deepavali 8 November 2026 (India and Singapore), 28 October 2027 (Singapore) | India's festive search build starts in August |
| Double-date sales | Southeast Asia, Greater China, South Korea | 11.11 and 12.12 every year, with 9.9 earlier | Peak day differs by country |
| Christmas "ber" months | Philippines | Season from 1 September; Christmas Day 25 December | The longest run-up in the region |
| Lunar New Year | Hong Kong, Singapore and Chinese communities across the region | First day 6 February 2027 (Hong Kong and Singapore) | Statutory holidays differ: Hong Kong 6, 8 and 9 February; Singapore 6 and 7 February |
| Ramadan and Hari Raya Puasa | Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore | Hari Raya Puasa 10 March 2027 (Singapore) | Moon-dependent; local dates can differ |
| Songkran | Thailand | 13 to 15 April every year | Thai New Year, recognised by UNESCO |
| Buddha's Birthday and Vesak | Hong Kong, Singapore | 13 May 2027 (Hong Kong); 20 May 2027 (Singapore) | Same festival, different dates |
| Mid-Autumn Festival | Hong Kong and Chinese communities across the region | Hong Kong holiday 16 September 2027, the day after the festival | Check whether the holiday falls on or after the day |
Sources: Singapore's Ministry of Manpower, Hong Kong's Labour Department, India's Press Information Bureau, the Tourism Authority of Thailand, PTV News and Criteo, all linked above or here.
When does the festive build actually start?
The build starts earlier than the date on the calendar, and the right lead time comes from category data, not habit. India shows it most clearly.
In September 2026, Google India reported that search interest in "Diwali sales" started surging as early as August. Shoppers averaged 8.3 searches on search engines during their Navratri and Diwali journey, those using AI tools turned to generative AI chatbots 7.5 times on average, and 9 in 10 purchasers researched beforehand. A campaign that launches in Diwali week meets buyers who have already decided.
SOMIN's Pepsi India read reached the same conclusion from content data. Across 12 monthly windows, festive communal celebration peaked at 38 to 39% of cola-category content from September to January, and the pattern was verified across two cycles: 58% in August and September 2024, 50% in December and January, 36% around Holi. The plan therefore re-timed Pepsi's festive content to an August-to-November build, anchored in real festival food moments from Onam to Diwali, and gave the festive pillar 20% of a 39-post, 13-week calendar.
The same read is a warning about one-off spikes. The category's food-pairing content ran at 17 to 25% from April to July 2025, but in 2026 it was little more than a brief Iftar-window echo of 16% in March and April. A festive bump that does not repeat is not a season, and the plan excluded out-of-season festival triggers from the calendar.
Should festive content follow the festival or the whitespace?
Both: the festival sets when you publish, and local whitespace sets what you say. A festive greeting that sounds like every competitor's is a slot filled, not a message landed.
SOMIN's Tim Hortons Singapore read covered 12 monthly windows from September 2025 to September 2026, checked against the prior year, with festive gifting among the themes tracked. Affordable indulgence rose from 11% to 19% of category content, but competitors already owned it. Authentic local discovery made up 63% of creator content and 0% for Tim Hortons and its six rivals. The Q4 2026 calendar of 38 posts, three a week with 12 lead posts from 1 October, was therefore weighted towards The Discovery Destination (45%), then Small Joys, Shared (35%) and Fuel for the Active City (20%).
The mood of a season can change too. In SOMIN's audience-research workspace, a paid-ads study for January to April 2026 found a 13-ad theme on festive costs: consumers becoming more cost-conscious in festive seasons such as Lunar New Year and looking for ways to celebrate without overspending.
The same study surfaced a model-generated persona, The Savvy Celebrant, in 11 ads. A study for April to July 2026 added a 33-ad theme warning against misreading consumer behaviour during traditional holidays. Festive does not always mean premium.
How do you build an APAC festive calendar, step by step?
Build it bottom-up, one market at a time, then line the markets up. Six steps cover most brands.
- Pull official dates for the next 12 months in each market and flag every moon-dependent festival.
- Read 12 months of category content per market and check each peak against the prior year.
- Set each build window from that data, such as August for Diwali in India or September for Christmas in the Philippines.
- Choose the message for each window from local whitespace, not from last year's regional creative.
- Weight pillars and posting slots, and drop festival triggers that fall out of season.
- Publish, then re-read the data after each season before planning the next one.
SOMIN's social media manager runs the last mile, writing in the brand voice and publishing on every channel, while the read itself follows the local approach in our piece on content localisation in Asia. The calendar itself stays a local document, owned market by market.
FAQ
What are the biggest festive marketing seasons in APAC?
Lunar New Year, Ramadan and Hari Raya, Deepavali and India's wider festive season, the Philippine Christmas season and the 11.11 and 12.12 double-date sales are among the largest. Their weight varies by market, so rank them with local data.
How early should brands start festive campaigns in Asia?
Earlier than the festival date suggests. Google India saw "Diwali sales" searches surge from August, and the Philippine Christmas season starts on 1 September, so set lead times per market from search and content data.
Do festival dates change every year?
Many do. Singapore's Deepavali holiday moves from 8 November 2026 to 28 October 2027, and Lunar New Year moves from 17 February 2026 to 6 February 2027, so rebuild the calendar every year from official lists.
Should a global brand run the same festive creative across APAC?
Rarely. The brand codes can stay constant, but the festival, the date, the build window and the local tension differ, and SOMIN's reads show the winning message often sits outside generic festive greetings.
Before the next quarter starts, list every festive date in your markets from official sources, then pull last year's category content for the same weeks. Where the data shows a repeated peak, book the build window now; where it does not, put the budget behind your local whitespace instead.
