Ohio school holidays

Ohio districts work to a minimum number of instructional hours rather than days, which gives them room to shape the year differently. The big city districts on this page start in the second half of August and finish between late May and early June, and several stagger their start dates by grade.

Cincinnati Public Schools goes back first, on August 19, 2026, followed by Columbus City on August 20, Cleveland Metropolitan and Toledo on August 24, and Akron on August 27. Cincinnati also finishes first, on May 26, 2027, while Cleveland and Akron run to June 3.

Toledo staggers its opening across a fortnight: grade 10 starts August 25, grades 11 and 12 on August 26, and kindergarten and pre-school not until September 2, 2026. Cleveland and Columbus start kindergarten later than the main body of students too.

Thanksgiving splits between the full week and the short version. Columbus, which calls it Wellness Week, plus Cincinnati and Toledo close from November 23 to 27, 2026. Cleveland and Akron take November 25 to 27 only.

Winter break is the most uniform part of the Ohio year. All five districts close from December 21, 2026 to January 1, 2027, with Cincinnati returning on January 5 after a staff development day.

Spring break is nearly aligned. Columbus, Cleveland, Toledo and Akron all take March 26 to April 2, 2027. Cincinnati is the exception, breaking a week earlier from March 22 to 26.

Fall breaks barely exist here. Cleveland closes for a single day, October 9, 2026, Akron has none at all, and Toledo's elementary and K-8 schools close October 29 and 30 for conferences while its high schools stay open. Toledo and Akron both add a Presidents' Day break in February, and Akron takes a further January break from the 15th to the 18th.

The week of March 26, 2027 is the one to plan around. Four of Ohio's five largest districts are off together, which makes it the busiest week of the year at indoor attractions in Cleveland and Columbus. Cincinnati's earlier break the week before is the quieter option if you have the choice.

October is close to empty of school breaks across Ohio, so a fall weekend trip is unusually easy to book. The other useful window is the last week of May, when Cincinnati has finished but Cleveland and Akron still have a week to go.

This page covers Columbus City Schools, Cleveland Metropolitan School District, Cincinnati Public Schools, Toledo Public Schools and Akron Public Schools. Year-round and extended-year schools in Columbus and Cleveland follow separate calendars.