The ultimate list of outdoor and nature holidays in 2024
Our comprehensive blog post features the ultimate list of outdoor and nature holidays and special days, including everything from National Bird Day to World Rewilding Day. Discover new ways to celebrate and honor the natural world. Whether you're a seasoned nature enthusiast or just looking for new ways to connect with the outdoors, our guide has you covered.
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Are you looking for a great excuse to skip work and head outside? Well, we have you covered with this exhaustive list of outdoor and nature holidays. No matter what you are interested in there is probably a holiday for it. So what are you waiting for? Find your favorite holiday on the list, get out, and start celebrating!
Note: We have updated this list for 2024. It is currently very USA oriented but we want to fix that soon. I’ll be updating this every year and adding as many international holidays as possible. So if you know of a holiday that isn’t on this list, even if it’s already passed, please leave a comment below. Our goal is to eventually include every holiday in the world that is outdoor or nature themed, or is normally celebrated outdoors.
Google Calendar
Note: You can now subscribe to our Google Calendar which includes all of these holidays. Click Here
2024 National Park Free Entrance Days
Every year the American National Park Service waives its entrance fees for a few Holidays and special anniversaries. The days for 2023 are listed below and you can learn more by visiting this National Park Service page.
- January 15th: Martin Luther King Jr’s Birthday
- April 20nd: First day of National Park Week
- June 19th: Juneteenth
- August 4th: Anniversary of the Great American Outdoors Act
- September 28th: National Public Lands Day
- November 11th: Veterans Day
January
- January 1st: First Day Hikes
- January 2nd: Happy Mew Year For Cats Day
- January 5th: National Bird Day
- January 6th: National Play Outside Day
- January 10th: Save the Eagles Day
- January 11th: National Step in a Puddle and Splash Your Friends Day
- January 14th: National Dress Up Your Pet Day
- January 20th: Penguin Awareness Day
- January 22nd: National Answer Your Cat’s Questions Day
- January 31st: International Zebra Day
February
- February 2nd: World Wetlands Day
- February 2nd: World Ostrich Day
- February 2nd: National Hedgehog Day
- February 2nd: National Marmot Day
- February 3rd: National Play Outside Day
- February 5th: Western Monarch Day
- February 9th: International Snowmobile Ride Day
- February 10th: Chinese New Year
- February 14th: World Bonobo Day)
- February 15th: World Hippo Day
- February 16th through February 19th: Great Backyard Bird Count
- February 18th: World Pangolin Day
- February 19th: World Whale Day
- February 22nd: National Walking the Dog Day
- February 24th - 27th: Whooping Crane Festival
- February 26th - March 1st: National Invasive Species Awareness Week
- February 27th: World Polar Bear Day
March
- March 1st: National Horse Protection Day
- March 1st: National Pig Day
- March 1st - 3rd: Festival of Owls Week - Houston, MN
- March 2nd: National Play Outside Day
- March 2nd: Iditarod Sled Dog Race Begins
- March 3rd: World Wildlife Day
- March 9th: National American Paddlefish Day
- March 11th: National Johnny Appleseed Day
- March 11th: Key Deer Awareness Day
- March 13th: National Day of Unplugging
- March 14th: National Learn About Butterflies Day
- March 14th: International Day of Action for Rivers
- March 15th: Buzzards Day
- March 18th: Global Recycling Day
- March 18th: World Serval Day
- March 19th: National Backyard Day
- March 20th: World Rewilding Day
- March 20th: World Sparrow Day
- March 21st: International Day of Forests
- March 22nd: World Water Day
- March 22nd: International Seal Day
- March 23rd: National Puppy Day
- March 29th: Manatee Appreciation Day
- March 30th: National Take a Walk In the Park Day
- March 30th: International Day of Zero Waste
April
- April 1st - 7th: National Wildlife Week
- April 2nd: National Ferret Day
- April 3rd: National Find a Rainbow Day
- April 3rd: World Aquatic Animal Day
- April 3rd: National Walking Day
- April 4th: World Rat Day
- April 6th: National Play Outside Day
- April 7th: International Beaver Day
- April 8th: National Zoo Lovers Day
- April 10th: National Farm Animals Day
- April 11th: National Pet Day
- April 13th: International Plant Appreciation Day
- April 14th: National Look At The Sky Day
- April 14th: National Dolphin Day
- April 16th: National Orchid Day
- April 17th: International Bat Appreciation Day
- April 20th - 28th: National Park Week
- April 21st - National Go Fly A Kite Day
- April 22nd: Earth Day
- April 22nd: Celebrate Trails Day
- April 23rd: National Picnic Day
- April 23rd: International Pallas Cat Day
- April 25th: World Penguin Day
- April 26th: National Help A Horse Day
- April 26th: Arbor Day
- April 26th: National Audubon Day
- April 27th: World Tapir Day
- April 27th: International Hyena Day
- April 29th: NPS National Junior Ranger Day
- April 30th: National Adopt A Shelter Pet Day
- April 30th: National Pet Parents Day
May
- First Full Week of May: National Wildflower Week
- May 2nd: World Tuna Day
- May 3rd: National Specially-Abled Pets Day
- May 3rd: International Leopard Day
- May 3rd: Wild Koala Day
- May 4th: Bird Day
- May 4th: National Play Outside Day
- May 4th: Greenery Day (Japan)
- May 4th: Green Up Day (Vermont)
- May 5th: Cinco de Mayo
- May 6th: Start Seeing Monarchs Day
- May 8th: World Donkey Day
- May 13th: World Migratory Bird Day
- May 13th: National Dog Moms Day
- May 13th: National Archery Day
- May 16th: National Love a Tree Day
- May 19th: National Endangered Species Day
- May 19th: National Bike to Work Day
- May 19th: Endangered Species Day
- May 20th: World Bee Day
- May 20th: Kids to Parks Day
- May 20th: National Rescue Dog Day
- May 20th: National Learn to Swim Day
- May 22nd: International Day for Biological Diversity
- May 23rd: World Turtle Day
- May 24th: National Scavenger Hunt Day
- May 24th: European Day of Parks
- May 26th: National Road Trip Day
- May 26th to June 1st: Black Birders Week
- May 27th: Memorial Day
- May 28th: World Dugong Day
- May 29th: World Otter Day
- May 30th: National Water a Flower Day
- May 31st: World Parrot Day
June
- June: Great Outdoors Month
- June: National Pollinator Month
- June 1st: World Reef Day
- June 1st: National Play Outside Day
- June 3rd: National Trails Day
- June 3rd: National Black Bear Day
- June 3rd: National Prairie Day
- June 3rd: World Bicycle Day
- June 4th: National Hug Your Cat Day
- June 5th: World Environment Day
- June 8th: National Daniel Boone Day
- June 8th: World Ocean Day
- June 11th: National Get Outdoors Day
- June 15th: Global Wind Day
- June 15th: Nature Photography Day
- June 17th: World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought
- June 18th: National Get Away Day
- June 18th: National Go Fishing Day
- June 20th: National American Eagle Day
- June 20th: Summer Solstice
- June 21st: Go Skateboarding Day
- June 22nd: World Rainforest Day
- June 25th: National Catfish Day
- June 26th: National Canoe Day
- June 28th: National Paul Bunyan Day
July
- July 1st: National Hop-a-Park Day
- July 4th: American Independence Day
- July 6th: National Play Outside Day
- July 7th: National Father Daughter Take a Walk Day
- July 10th: through July 16th: National Forest Week
- July 10th: National Kitten Day
- July 11th: Cow Appreciation Day
- July 15th: National I Love Horses Day
- July 26th: International Day for the Conservation of the Mangrove Ecosystems
- July 28th: World Nature Conservation Day
August
- August 3rd: National Play Outside Day
- August 5th: National Campfire Day and Night
- August 8th: National Sneak Some Zucchini Into Your Neighbor’s Porch Day
- August 19th: National Honey Bee Day
- August 25th: National Parks Service Birthday
- August 26th: National Dog Day
September
- September 1st: International Primate Day
- September 4th: National Wildlife Day
- September 4th through 8th: Zero Waste Week
- September 5th: Amazon Day
- September 7th: International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies
- September 7th: National Play Outside Day
- September 10th: National Hug Your Hound Day
- September 16th: Responsible Dog Ownership Day
- September 16th: World Cleanup Day
- September 16th: International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer
- September 18th: World Water Monitoring Day
- September 21st: Zero Emissions Day
- September 22nd: National Elephant Appreciation Day
- September 22nd: Fall Equinox
- September 23rd: National Public Lands Day
- September 23rd: National Dogs in Politics Day
- September 23rd: National Hunting and Fishing Day
- September 23rd: National Public Lands Day
- September 24th: World Rivers Day
- September 26th: National Johnny Appleseed Day
- September 27th: World Tourism Day
- September 29th: Urban National Wildlife Refuge Day
- September 30th: National Ghost Hunting Day
October
- October 1st: National Black Dog Day
- October 1st: National Fire Pup Day
- October 1st: National Green City Day
- October 4th: National Walk to School Day
- October 5th: National Play Outside Day
- October 10th: National Walk to a Park Day
- October 14th: World Migratory Bird Day
- October 22nd: National Make a Dog’s Day
- October 24th - 31st: Bat Week
- October 27th: National Black Cat Day
- October 29th: National Cat Day
- October 31st: Halloween
November
- November 2nd: National Play Outside Day
- November 4th: National Bison Day
- November 6th: Opt Outside Day
- November 17th: National Take a Hike Day
December
- December 2nd: National Mutt Day
- December 7th: National Play Outside Day
- December 11th: International Mountain Day
- December 20th: Go Caroling Day
- December 21st: Winter Solstice
Conclusion
There you have it, our ultimate list of outdoor and nature holidays. We knew that there were a lot of these holidays but the size of this list is still impressive. When we started I expected to find maybe half this many. We lost count of how many there are here but you shouldn’t have any trouble finding a few excuses a month to get outdoors. Of course, we can’t guarantee that your boss will let you off work for National Bison Day or National Find a Rainbow Day you might as well ask. What’s the worst that could happen?
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By Summer and Bill
Summer and Bill are the dynamic duo behind Adventureite.com, a blog dedicated to inspiring others to explore the great outdoors. With a combined lifetime of experience traveling and adventuring across America, they have a wealth of knowledge to share. From hiking to camping, kayaking to travel, Summer and Bill are passionate about helping others discover the beauty of the natural world.