Do Louisiana school holiday dates vary by district?

Yes. The dates on this page are statewide planning windows showing when most Louisiana districts take each break; they are not any single district's official calendar. Each district adopts its own calendar, so confirm with your local school before booking travel.

Louisiana School Calendar 2026-2027: Spring Break & Winter Break Dates

Louisiana has 69 public school districts, and each adopts its own school calendar. Together they enroll 586,537 students; the largest, Jefferson Parish, enrolls 46,790 (NCES, 2024-25).

The dates below are statewide planning windows for 2026-27 and 2027-28: our estimate of when most Louisiana schools take each break. They are not any one district's official calendar, so check your own district's calendar before booking travel.

Last updated: September 17, 2026 · Next review: January 2027

Dates vary by district. Use the statewide windows below for planning, then confirm with your local school district calendar before booking travel. Read how we source these dates.

Navigate to school year:

2025-26
2026-27
2027-28

Louisiana School Holidays 2025-26

The main school holiday breaks observed across Louisiana in 2025-26: winter break December 22, 2025 - January 5, 2026, spring break April 6 - 10, 2026, and summer break May 23, 2026 - August 5, 2026

Louisiana school holidays for 2025-26
School Holiday	Date
First Day of SchoolPublic	August 7, 2025The school year begins
Labor DayPublic	September 1, 2025Schools closed statewide
Veterans DayPublic	November 11, 2025Public holiday
Thanksgiving BreakPublic	November 24 - 28, 2025Holiday break
Winter BreakPublic	December 22, 2025 - January 5, 2026Holiday break
MLK Jr. DayPublic	January 19, 2026Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Presidents DayPublic	February 16, 2026Observed statewide
Memorial DayPublic	May 25, 2026No school
Spring BreakPublic	April 6 - 10, 2026Standard spring break window
Last Day of SchoolPublic	May 20 - 22, 2026End of the school year
Summer BreakPublic	May 23, 2026 - August 5, 2026Holiday break

Louisiana School Holidays 2026-27

The main school holiday breaks observed across Louisiana in 2026-27: winter break December 21, 2026 - January 1, 2027, spring break April 3 - 10, 2027, and summer break May 23, 2027 - August 4, 2027

Louisiana school holidays for 2026-27
School Holiday	Date
First Day of School (2026-27)Public	August 6 - 10, 2026Early August start standard
Labor DayPublic	September 7, 2026No school
Election DayPublic	November 3, 2026State holiday for general elections
Veterans DayPublic	November 11, 2026Public holiday
Thanksgiving BreakPublic	November 23 - 27, 2026A full week off is standard in LA
Winter BreakPublic	December 21, 2026 - January 1, 2027End-of-year break
MLK Jr. DayPublic	January 18, 2027Federal holiday
Mardi Gras BreakState-Specific	February 16 - 18, 2027Major cultural observance; schools are closed for Mardi Gras (Feb 17)
Good FridayPublic	March 26, 2027State holiday
Spring BreakPublic	April 3 - 10, 2027Commonly aligned with the Easter weekend
Last Day of SchoolPublic	May 20 - 22, 2027Typically finishes in late May
Memorial DayPublic	May 31, 2027No school
Summer BreakPublic	May 23, 2027 - August 4, 2027Holiday break

Louisiana School Holidays 2027-28

The main school holiday breaks observed across Louisiana in 2027-28: winter break December 20, 2027 - December 31, 2027, spring break March 27 - 31, 2028, and summer break (varies by district)

Louisiana school holidays for 2027-28
School Holiday	Date
First Day of School (2027-28)Public	August 5 - 9, 2027Early August start standard
Labor DayPublic	September 6, 2027No school
Veterans DayPublic	November 11, 2027Public holiday
Thanksgiving BreakPublic	November 22 - 26, 2027A full week off is standard in LA
Winter BreakPublic	December 20, 2027 - December 31, 2027Holiday break
MLK Jr. DayPublic	January 17, 2028Federal holiday
Mardi Gras BreakState-Specific	February 8 - 10, 2028Major cultural tradition in LA schools
Spring BreakPublic	March 27 - 31, 2028Easter break window
Last Day of SchoolPublic	May 20 - 22, 2028Typically finishes in late May
Memorial DayPublic	May 29, 2028No school

Largest school districts in Louisiana

5 districts enroll 31% of Louisiana's district students. The other 64 districts each set a calendar of their own, so two schools a few miles apart can break in different weeks.

Separately, 12% of Louisiana's public school students attend charter schools or other public agencies outside a regular district. Those schools adopt their own calendars too.

Largest school districts in Louisiana by enrollment, 2024-25
District	Students	Calendar
Jefferson ParishHarvey	46,79075 schools	Check the district's website
East Baton Rouge ParishBaton Rouge	39,32081 schools	Check the district's website
St. Tammany ParishCovington	35,95655 schools	Check the district's website
Caddo ParishShreveport	32,16556 schools	Check the district's website
Lafayette ParishLafayette	29,39645 schools	Check the district's website

Enrollment and district counts: NCES Common Core of Data, LEA directory 2024-25 (via Urban Institute Education Data API). Counts cover regular local school districts; enrollment is fall 2024.

How Louisiana law shapes the school calendar

Start and end dates: District option.; 28 La. Admin. Code Pt CXV, 333
Minimum instructional time: 177 days; 63,720 minutes; Days or minutes.; For comparison, the instructional minutes are equivalent to:; 1,062 hours.; La. Stat. Ann. § 17:154.1; 28 La. Admin. Code Pt CXV, 333

Source: Education Commission of the States 50-state comparison, published January 2020 (days and hours, start and finish dates). Calendar statutes change, so check the cited section for the current text. Every state side by side: school calendar laws by state.

Good to know in Louisiana

Most districts follow this calendar pattern, though private schools may vary a bit on start dates and religious holidays.

Louisiana uniquely observes Mardi Gras as a major state-wide school holiday. Full-week recesses for Thanksgiving are standard across most parishes.

Louisiana's 2027-2028 academic year features an earlier Mardi Gras break in February.

Louisiana school breaks: quick answers

The most searched Louisiana dates for 2026-27 at a glance.

When is winter break in Louisiana 2026-27?

Winter break in Louisiana (2026-27) is December 21, 2026 - January 1, 2027.

When is spring break in Louisiana 2026-27?

Spring break in Louisiana (2026-27) is April 3 - 10, 2027.

When is summer break in Louisiana 2026-27?

Summer break in Louisiana (2026-27) is May 23, 2027 - August 4, 2027. Exact dates vary by district — confirm with your local school calendar.

When does school start and end in Louisiana 2026-27?

School in Louisiana (2026-27) starts August 6 - 10, 2026 and ends May 20 - 22, 2027.

Sources & verification

The statewide windows are our planning estimates, not transcribed from a single official calendar. District pages linked above are transcribed from each district's own published calendar. Official sources for Louisiana: