It’s confirmed, private sector workers will get three days off and public sector workers will get a full week off.

It takes a lot to cheer us up on a Sunday, but news that there will only be two working days next week ought to do it.

The Eid Al Adha holidays for the UAE have been confirmed today, and private sector workers are set to get an extra long weekend, from Friday 9 September to Tuesday 13 September.

The dates were announced by Saqr Ghobash, Minister of Human Resources and Emiratisation, The National reported.

Public sector workers will get a full week off, H.H. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, ruler of Dubai and Vice President of the UAE, confirmed in a tweet earlier today, announcing that workers won’t be back in the office until Sunday 18 September.

That means they’ll get a whopping nine days off if you include the weekends.

Private sector workers will be expected back at the office on Wednesday 14 September.

eid-al-fitr-sheikh--mohammedHH Sheikh Mohammed and other UAE royals perform an Eid Al Fitr prayer. 

Eid Al Adha public holidays begin on Arafat Day (which is the day before Eid). Early moon predictions stated that Arafat Day would fall on either Saturday 10 September, which would have given most of us a four-day weekend, or Sunday 11 September.

Last year private sector workers got three days of national holiday, with a break from Wednesday September 23 to Friday September 25. This meant four days off for those who automatically get Saturday off too.

WHAT THE HOLIDAYS MEAN

Arafat Day

This marks the second day of the annual pilgrimage or haj. At dawn on Arafat Day Muslim pilgrims make their way from Mecca to the hill called Mount Arafat. This is where Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, gave his farewell sermon in the last year of his life.

eid-al-fitr-menMen celebrating Eid Al Fitr on the streets of Dubai. 

Eid Al Adha

This holiday honours Ibrahim’s willingness to sacrifice his son Ismail (which is why goats are symbolically sacrificed over this period). It is separate from Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of Ramadan.

During the holiday period families get together and exchange gifts of sweets and perfume, and women often apply mehndi/henna designs to their hands (pictured above).

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Photo: Getty Images