RSSMicrosoft Outlook comes with a file named Outlook.hol (Outlook.txt in Outlook 2000 and older) that includes lists of holidays that you can import into your personal Calendar folder using the Tools | Options | Calendar (or Calendar Options) | Add Holidays command. This makes it easy to add holidays and many users wind up importing the same group of holidays twice.
You can remove the duplicates one of two ways: delete all events in the Holiday category then re-add the holidays you want added or use the Created date field to sort by date added an delete the duplicates, which added at the same time.
You can use the Sort by Created date method to remove any duplicated calendar items.
Delete the Holiday category
In Outlook 2007 and Outlook 2003: switch to the By Category view.
In Outlook 2010 and 2013: switch to a List view then arrange by Category.
Select the Holiday category then press Delete.
Go to Options, Calendar and click Add Holidays. Select the Locations you want to install and complete the wizard.
Sort by Created date
In Outlook 2010 and Outlook 2013:
- Switch to the View ribbon and select Change View, List
- Click View Settings then Columns
- Select Created and click Add -> to add it to the view
- Click OK to return to Outlook
- Sort by the Created date field
- The holidays that are imported together will have the same Created date
- Select the first event and hold Shift as you select the last
- Press Delete
To remove the duplicates from Outlook 2007 and older
To use the Created date method to delete duplicated appointments in Outlook 2007 and older, follow the instructions below.
- Choose View | Current View | Events to switch to the table-format Events view. All the holidays will be listed under the Recurrence: (none) group. (Outlook 2003: View | Arrange By | Current View | Events)
- Right-click any column heading, then choose Field Chooser.
- In the Field Chooser, switch from the Frequently-used fields list to Date/Time fields, and then drag the Created date to the view to add it to the fields displayed.
- Click on the Created column header to sort by that field.
- You should now see two distinct sets of holidays, each in reverse chronological order. Click on the first holiday of the set you want to delete.
- Use the scroll bar to view the last holiday of that set. Hold down the Shift key as you click on the last holiday. This selects all the holidays in that set.
- Press Delete to remove them all from the Calendar folder.
- Drag the Created column header out of the view to remove it.
While its very easy to remove duplicate Holidays and a duplicate removal utility is not necessary, if you have duplicates of other calendar appointments, one of the tools below can remove the duplicates.
| Tools in the Spotlight | |
|---|---|
The Duplicate Appointments Eliminator allows you to either delete all the duplicates or move them to a folder of your choice. Comparisons of two appointments (optionally) based on subject, location, start time, end time, body, categories, recurrences, and required attendees. Works with Exchange public folders or other shared folders and you can choose to operate on a single folder or select many folders at once. Works with Microsoft Outlook 2007, Outlook 2003, Outlook 2002 and Outlook 2000. Enter code WD9BHK53 during checkout. | |
Delete duplicate contacts, notes, tasks, journal and calendar items in Microsoft Outlook folders and Exchange Server folders. Duplicates can be marked, copied or moved to any folder. It supports searching across the folders. Supports all versions of Outlook, including Outlook 2007/2010. Version 2.6 | |
| Tools | |
|---|---|
1-click solution to remove duplicate mails, contacts or calendar items. Merges contacts automatically, has an undo function and a configurable advanced mode. Version 3.03 Now supports Outlook 2010 (both 32 and 64 bit). | |
Accurate Outlook Duplicate Remover(AODR) can find and remove all duplicate Outlook items automatically. It quickly removes duplicates from Contacts, Calendar, Tasks, Notes and Email folders in one click. You can select any folder for duplicate Removing. It helps you to use your Outlook much more efficiently. Free. | |
Synchronizations with smartphones/PDAs inadvertently create duplicate appointments and you are left with a big mess on your hands. With the Delete Duplicate Appointments add-in, you can quickly delete these duplicate appointments with just one click of a button. Works with Outlook 2000 to Outlook 2010 32-bit only. | |
Outlook duplicate remover add-in for Microsoft Outlook to find and remove duplicate contacts, emails, calendar items, tasks and notes automatically. Remove Outlook duplicates. Merge Outlook contacts and other items. Compare, assign category, flag and move duplicates to selected folders. Preview duplicate search results prior to processing. Duplicate Killer 3.40 offers a new Junk Contacts removal functionality, regarding contacts that have too little information, as well as a re-designed duplicates report dialog with improved functionality. Duplicate Killer is compatible with the latest Windows 8 and Office 2013. | |
Free tool for removing duplicate items from Outlook folders. ODIR recognizes duplicates in Contacts; Calendar; Tasks; Notes and Email folders. Using ODIR is very easy: select a folder and click the button Remove Duplicate Items. ODIR scans the selected folder for duplicates and MOVES all duplicates found to a subfolder ODIR_duplicate_items. Version 1.2 | |
Outlook Duplicate Remover allows you to find and remove Outlook duplicates and junk contacts in one click. Search duplicate items and merge Outlook duplicates automatically. Remove Outlook duplicates, such as duplicate Email, duplicate Contacts and Calendar events and Junk contacts. It is an automatic software add-in for Microsoft Outlook without any settings to configure. Duplicate Remover is compatible with latest Windows 7 and Outlook 2010 as well as Outlook 2007, 2003, 2002 and Exchange Server Public Folders. Now supports support French and German languages. | |
Removes duplicate items from Calendar, Tasks, Contacts, Notes, and mail folders. Free. | |
Clean up your Outlook mailbox from unwanted and duplicate emails with Outlook duplicate remover tool. This software works as an Add-Ins in Outlook and removes duplicates as per different time span and scan criteria. Customized operations like Mark as Expired or Flag, Delete Permanently, Copy to folder and more are also a notable feature of this software. | |
More Information
Add Holidays Form (sample Outlook form to distribute holidays company-wide)
Outlook Holidays on the Wrong Date
Limited Holidays for Outlook 98 Calendar
How to Add and Delete Holidays in the Calendar (MSKB)
OL2000: How to Delete All Outlook Calendar Items (MSKB)
Microsoft Outlook’s missing holidays (Outlook-tips)
