Places That Don't Observe Daylight Saving Time

While roughly 70 countries observe Daylight Saving Time, not every part of those countries participates. Several well-known regions have opted out entirely. The reasons vary — geography, climate, politics, and public preference all play a role.

Arizona (United States)

Most of Arizona stays on Mountain Standard Time (MST, UTC−7) year-round. The state exempted itself from DST in 1968, just two years after the Uniform Time Act made DST standard across the US. The rationale is practical: Arizona's hot desert climate means residents prefer cooler, darker evenings rather than extra sunlight extending already-hot summer days.

The Navajo Nation, which extends into Arizona, Utah, and New Mexico, does observe DST to stay consistent across its territory. The Hopi Reservation, which is surrounded by the Navajo Nation but governed separately, does not observe DST — creating a nested exception within an exception.

During summer, Arizona shares the same time as Pacific Daylight Time areas (Los Angeles, San Francisco) rather than other Mountain Time states like Denver. This can confuse travelers — check the current US DST schedule to understand the offset.

Hawaii (United States)

Hawaii has never observed DST under the Uniform Time Act. The state's near-tropical latitude (around 20°N) means the difference between the longest and shortest days is only about 2.5 hours — far less than mainland states at higher latitudes. Shifting clocks would provide minimal benefit.

Hawaii uses Hawaii-Aleutian Standard Time (HAST, UTC−10) year-round. During mainland DST, the time gap between Hawaii and the US West Coast widens from 2 hours to 3 hours.

US Territories

None of the US territories observe DST:

• Puerto Rico — Atlantic Standard Time (AST, UTC−4) year-round
• US Virgin Islands — AST year-round
• American Samoa — Samoa Standard Time (UTC−11) year-round
• Guam — Chamorro Standard Time (UTC+10) year-round
• Northern Mariana Islands — Chamorro Standard Time year-round

Most territories are near the equator or in the tropics, where day length variation is minimal.

Saskatchewan (Canada)

Most of Saskatchewan stays on Central Standard Time (CST, UTC−6) year-round, effectively making it the Canadian equivalent of Arizona. The province opted out of DST in the 1960s.

The exception: a few communities near the Saskatchewan-Alberta border (around Lloydminster) follow Alberta's DST schedule to stay aligned with their neighboring province. During summer, most of Saskatchewan is on the same time as Manitoba and Ontario even though they are in different zones.

Yukon took a different path: in 2020, it moved to permanent DST (Pacific Daylight Time year-round), making it the first Canadian jurisdiction to adopt permanent DST.

Australian States That Skip DST

Australia is split. Five states and territories observe DST (ACT, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania), while three do not:

• Queensland — held a referendum in 1992 and voted against DST. The state's tropical north sees little day length variation, and farmers and outdoor workers opposed the change.
• Northern Territory — also tropical; does not observe DST.
• Western Australia — has trialed DST three times (most recently 2006–2009) and voters rejected it each time by referendum.

This creates time zone seams within Australia. During summer, Sydney is 30 minutes ahead of Adelaide but on the same time as Brisbane (which doesn't change). See Australian DST dates for 2026.

Iceland

Iceland stays on GMT (UTC+0) year-round despite its high latitude (63–66°N). The country used DST briefly in 1917–1921 and again in 1939–1968, then stopped. Iceland's extreme seasonal daylight variation (near-24-hour sunlight in June, only 4–5 hours in December) means an hour shift has little practical impact — summer days are already very long.

Countries That Recently Abolished DST

Several countries have stopped observing DST in recent years:

• Russia (2014) — moved to permanent standard time after a failed experiment with permanent summer time. See the full history.
• Turkey (2016) — adopted permanent summer time (UTC+3).
• Brazil (2019) — suspended DST, citing studies showing negligible energy savings.
• Mexico (2022) — abolished DST for most of the country. Border municipalities near the US still follow the US DST schedule for coordination.

The trend toward abolishing DST is global. The evidence on DST's benefits and drawbacks continues to shape policy decisions.

Last reviewed: March 2026. Data sources: official government publications and worldwideclock.com.