Laydays can be defined as the days kept aside in a ship’s voyage schedule for loading and unloading of the cargo. Laydays represent the time at which a ship must reach the charterer for cargo operations. Laydays are decided on the basis of the type and amount of cargo. Larger loads might needs several laydays, which are defined in the shipping contract. If a particular ship is not able to reach the charterer in the defined laydays, it is required to pay a penalty/fine. Laydays are always planned in advance so that all the required operations are carried out in the specified time. Laydays are defined in different ways such as: Running days – Includes consecutive days including weekends and holidays Working days – Includes consecutive days excluding weekends and holidays Weather working days – Includes days on which the weather permits to continuous work of cargo loading and unloading