Embassies observe two countries' holidays: their own and the host's. That doubles your chances of finding a locked door.
- Check the holiday list on the embassy website before booking anything. Diwali closes Indian missions; Thanksgiving closes US ones. To verify public holiday closures for embassies and consulates in the destination country, check both the embassy's holiday page and the destination country's official holiday list before you pick travel dates.
- Many consulates in Gulf countries close Friday and Saturday, not Saturday and Sunday.
- Visa application centers (VFS, BLS) keep different hours than the consulate itself. Confirm which one your appointment is at.
- Morning slots beat afternoon ones. Systems go down, queues build, and staff leave on time regardless.
- Ramadan and the December holidays slow everything across the Middle East and the West respectively. Plan around them.
Sources: U.S. State Department
The five-minute check: open the embassy's holiday page, confirm your appointment date is not on it, and confirm the office type and address. Three checks, zero wasted trips. And once the date is confirmed, SlotAlert can watch for earlier openings at the same consulate, $9.99 one-time.