Easter may not technically be the first bank holiday of the year (that honour goes to New Year’s Day), but for most it certainly feels like it.

By the time the Easter weekend rolls around, it will have been around 11 weeks since the last bank holiday, and families across the country will surely be looking forward to some time together.

Easter can fall on any Sunday between March 22 and April 25, with last year’s Easter Sunday celebration falling on March 31.

This year, the Easter weekend will start with Good Friday on April 18, and end with Easter Monday on April 21. 

But why does the date Easter falls on change?

Easter arrives on the first Sunday following the first full moon after the spring equinox.

And to calculate Easter, the spring equinox is always on March 21.

The last time Easter was later than it will be this year was in 2019, when Easter Sunday fell on April 21, a day later than it will this year.

Easter won’t be as late as it was six years ago until 2038 when it will fall on Sunday April 25.

Next year, Easter will be earlier than it is this time around, with Easter Sunday falling on April 5.

A year later, Easter will fall quite early on March 27, and in 2028, it will fall on April 16.