http://stackoverflow.com – i converted String "Mon, 11 Feb 2013 08:00:00 CST" to date using the following code java.util.Date d=null; try { d= new SimpleDateFormat("EEE, dd MMM yyyy hh:mm:ss z").parse("date"); } catch (ParseException e) { // TODO Auto-generated catch block e.printStackTrace(); } How to add this date to calendar as a beginTime and also an endTime 30minutes difference (HowTos)