A municipality, hotel or agency planning a national-day show in the Gulf works with six calendars. Oman celebrates in November; the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Qatar in December; Saudi Arabia and Kuwait in February, with Saudi National Day following in September. Below are the dates, the flag colours and what a proposal brief should contain.
Six countries, six dates
- Oman, National Day: Royal Decree 15/2025 set the official dates as 20–21 November. The holiday days are announced each year and can move; in 2025 they fell on 26–27 November. Flag: red, white and green.
- United Arab Emirates, Eid Al Etihad: 2 December, marking the 1971 union. Commemoration Day falls two days earlier, on 30 November; factor it in when planning the programme. Flag: red, green, white and black.
- Bahrain, National Day: 16 December. It is celebrated together with the anniversary of King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa's accession to the throne; in 2025 the public holidays fell on 16 and 17 December. Flag: red and white.
- Qatar, National Day: 18 December. Flag: maroon and white.
- Saudi Arabia, Founding Day and National Day: Founding Day on 22 February and National Day on 23 September carry different meanings and have separate programmes. Flag: green and white.
- Kuwait, National Day and Liberation Day: 25 and 26 February; Liberation Day marks 1991. Flag: green, white, red and black.
Public holidays are announced separately every year. Confirm the exact day and time of the show with the organiser and the event programme.
When should planning start?
A national-day show passes through a chain of approvals: the brief and venue photographs, the music edit and concept, sign-off on the simulation, the product and shipping plan, and finally site set-up and testing. Once a show crosses a border, shipping and site approval can take as long as the design. We recommend opening talks by early November for December dates, in December for February dates and in early summer for 23 September. This is planning advice, not an official deadline.
The venue decides the audience, and the audience decides the design
A crowd along a corniche forms a long, narrow viewing line, so the design runs from several firing positions along the shore instead of a single centre, and mirrored symmetry lets the whole line see the same moment. At hotels and resorts guests watch from terraces and the beach, and safety distances and resort operations set the layout. Ceremonies in squares and stadiums add broadcast cameras: the show has to work for the crowd and for the screen. On the waterfront, firing from barges is another option, covered in our guide to fireworks over water.
Flag colours and music
One of the strongest finales for a national-day show is the host country's flag: white and maroon for Qatar, green and white for Saudi Arabia. Black cannot be drawn in the sky with any effect; in the UAE and Kuwaiti flags it can be told through darkness and short silences between the colours. If the national anthem or patriotic songs are used, agree with the organiser which pieces play and in what order, because the anthem's place in the protocol differs from one programme to the next. For choosing the track, see our pyromusical music guide.
Daytime celebrations: coloured smoke
Part of the ceremonies and parades take place in daylight, when coloured light effects look faint. Coloured smoke in the flag colours and smoke shells in the sky suit those hours. For daytime shows we advise against black smoke and long grey salute barrages, which can carry the wrong associations for a crowd in the region. Our guide on sunset versus night shows helps with timing.
Country conditions and who does what
Bringing product into the country, storage, site approval and on-site responsibilities are planned separately in each Gulf state. A plan used in one country cannot simply be repeated in another. At proposal stage we set out in writing who handles the design, choreography, firing script, crew, shipping and local arrangements.
What to include in your brief
- Country, city and venue (corniche, hotel, square, stadium, over water)
- Date and the time window of the show
- Who is asking: public body, hotel, agency or company
- Expected audience size and main viewing direction
- Duration, music and the protocol running order
- Budget range and decision timeline
- The person in charge on site and the local contact
With these details we can make a first assessment quickly. Our quote form asks the same questions.
Our experience
Our real reference in the Arab world is the co-production we took part in in Tripoli, Libya, in February 2026; the footage is on the project page. Our projects in Türkiye include the Bosphorus show for the Republic's centenary on 29 October 2023 and the 2024 Victory Day celebrations in Eminönü. For each new country we build the design from scratch around its calendar, venue and conditions.
Date sources
- UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention: Eid Al Etihad
- UAE Government: public holidays
- Qatar Council of Ministers: national occasions
- Bahrain Prime Minister's Office: National Day holidays
- Oman Royal Decree 15/2025
- Gulf News: Oman National Day holidays 2025
- Saudipedia: Founding Day and National Day
- Gulf News: Kuwait National Day and Liberation Day