Cairo international school holidays and term dates 2026

The Cairo school year in 2025 to 2026

Cairo has no single citywide term calendar. The city runs roughly seventy international schools across two broad rhythms: American framework schools that open in mid to late August and finish in early June, and British framework schools that open in September and finish in mid June. Both close for the Egyptian public holidays on top of their own breaks. For the wider picture of schools and stages, start with our international schools in Cairo directory, and for the cost side see our guide to international school fees in Cairo. The dates below are drawn from two published 2025 to 2026 school calendars, one American and one British, so you can see the two patterns side by side before checking your own school.

The practical takeaway is that an August starter and a September starter can sit a month apart at the front of the year yet finish within a week of each other in June, because the American calendar front loads its days and the British calendar runs three balanced terms. If you are comparing two offers, line up the half term and Eid windows rather than the start date, because those are where family travel plans actually collide.

American calendar schools: the CAC pattern

Cairo American College in Maadi, the city's longest established American school, published the following framework for 2025 to 2026. It is representative of the American track followed by schools such as the American International School in Egypt, although each sets its own dates.

The American year is the more compact of the two, running about 177 instructional days with a long winter break and a spring break pinned to Eid al Fitr. Graduation falls in the first week of June and the year closes before the worst of the summer heat.

British calendar schools: the MES pattern

The Modern English School Cairo in New Cairo, which teaches British, American and IB pathways, published the three term British framework below for 2025 to 2026. Schools such as the British International School Cairo follow a comparable shape with their own dates.

The British year starts almost a month after the American one but lands its final day only a few days later, in the middle of June. Note that schools observe reduced Ramadan hours through the fasting month, which in 2026 runs from roughly mid February to mid March, so afternoons are shorter for several weeks before the Eid al Fitr break.

Egyptian public holidays that close schools

Whatever calendar a school follows, the national public holidays close every school in Cairo. The dates that matter most to families in 2026 are below. The Islamic holidays depend on the sighting of the moon and are only confirmed close to the time, so treat those as expected rather than fixed. Several civic holidays may also be moved to the nearest weekend by ministerial decree.

The spring break in March sits on Eid al Fitr in 2026, so the two longest family travel windows of the year, spring and the summer from mid June, are the periods to book early as demand peaks across Egypt.

Planning the 2026 year

Three practical points for families planning around a Cairo school. First, confirm the exact dates with your own school, because the tables above are two published examples and not a citywide standard, and the 2026 to 2027 calendars were not all published at the time of writing. Second, international school fees in Cairo are usually billed by term or semester and the August or September restart carries the first invoice, so our guide to international school fees in Cairo is worth reading alongside the calendar. Third, IGCSE, A level and IB examinations run through May and overlap the Eid al Adha period, so senior families should check for any clash before booking travel, while families with younger children can see stage timing in our Cairo primary schools guide. For application timing rather than term dates, see our Cairo admissions deadlines 2026 page, and for tours our Cairo school open days 2026 guide.

School holidays 2026 2026: FAQ