2026 Children's Day (Brazil)

Children's Day in Brazil, Dia das Crianças, falls on October 12 and coincides with the feast of Our Lady of Aparecida, the country's patron saint, whose day has been a national public holiday since 1980. The children's observance is older, dating from a 1924 decree, but it became popular after toy manufacturers and retailers promoted it from the 1960s onwards. Kids receive presents, and families go out to parks, zoos, cinemas, shopping malls and theme parks, which run special programmes; schools hold parties and gift drives for less privileged children in the days before. It is the second-biggest toy-selling date after Christmas, so stores launch promotions in late September and shopping centres are crowded on the eve. Meanwhile hundreds of thousands of pilgrims travel to the Basilica of Aparecida in São Paulo state for the religious feast, and as a national holiday it often creates a long weekend, so hotels in coastal resorts fill up. This countdown ticks to midnight Brasília time in São Paulo on October 12.