Italian public holidays 2026 and early 2027: long weekends

A printable PDF calendar for 2026

A calendar to keep on your desk: all twelve months at a glance, public holidays circled, and a second page listing holidays, useful breaks, January and Easter 2027, with room for travel notes. The PDF is in Italian, on two landscape A4 pages.

Download the free 2026 and early 2027 calendar (PDF, Italian)

Italian public holidays in 2026

The following dates are national holidays, with Easter shown explicitly even though it always falls on Sunday. All Sundays are holidays. A public holiday does not mean every business is closed: shops, museums, restaurants and transport operators may follow special opening hours or timetables.

How much annual leave do the 2026 long weekends need?

Compare consecutive days away with the leave required. Travel days are included: a four-day break may mean three nights, and transfer times can make a big difference on a short trip.

January: combine New Year and Epiphany

1 January 2026 is Thursday and 6 January is Tuesday. Taking Friday 2 and Monday 5 January off gives six consecutive days, from 1 to 6 January. For a shorter break, choose just one of those leave days: 1–4 January or 3–6 January.

Easter and Labour Day: long weekends without annual leave

Easter is 5 April and Easter Monday is 6 April, creating a three-day weekend from 4 to 6 April. Taking 7, 8, 9 and 10 April off gives nine days, from 4 to 12 April. Good Friday, 3 April, is an ordinary working day in Italy’s national calendar.

Liberation Day falls on Saturday 25 April, but Friday 1 May creates a three-day break through 3 May. Combine the two holidays by taking 27–30 April off for nine consecutive days away, from 25 April to 3 May.

The Republic Day break

Republic Day is Tuesday 2 June. Request Monday 1 June off for a break from Saturday 30 May to Tuesday 2 June. Four days suit a city and its surroundings, or a stay with one base and only a few hours of travelling.

Ferragosto, Saint Francis and All Saints’ Day

Ferragosto falls on Saturday 15 August, Saint Francis on Sunday 4 October and All Saints’ Day on Sunday 1 November. For people with weekends off, these dates create no extra break. Italy’s national calendar does not automatically move a weekend holiday to Monday: a longer stay requires annual leave or days off you actually have available.

December: Immaculate Conception, Christmas and New Year

With the Immaculate Conception on Tuesday, taking 7 December off creates four days from 5 to 8 December. Christmas is Friday and Saint Stephen’s Day Saturday, so the break without annual leave runs from 25 to 27 December.

For a longer trip, take 28, 29, 30 and 31 December off to combine Christmas and New Year: ten days from 25 December to 3 January. Add 4 and 5 January to stay away through 6 January 2027: thirteen consecutive days with six days of leave. Weekends are already included in these totals.

Early 2027 holidays: New Year, Epiphany and Easter

New Year’s Day is Friday, providing a three-day weekend. Epiphany falls on Wednesday: taking 4 and 5 January off creates a break from 1 to 6 January, while taking 7 and 8 January off gives 6–10 January. Combining both options requires four leave days for ten consecutive days, from 1 to 10 January.

Easter 2027 arrives early, on 28 March; Easter Monday is 29 March. The weekend from 27 to 29 March provides three days without annual leave. Here is how the date of Easter is calculated.

How to make the most of a long weekend

The calendar helps us find the time; a trip works better when the itinerary leaves room for what we discover along the way. For three days, I would choose somewhere reachable without losing two half-days to connections. With nine or ten days, there is room for several stops without changing accommodation every night.

1. Confirm leave first. A Monday between a weekend and a holiday is still a working day: the extended break needs arranging. Shift workers should recalculate using their actual roster.
2. Compare the full cost. Transport, luggage, parking and the number of nights matter more than the ticket price alone. Trying nearby departure and return dates helps compare real alternatives.
3. Check cancellation and change terms. Before making non-refundable bookings, confirm the conditions, your leave and the availability of your travelling companions.
4. Check holiday opening times. Consult the operator’s website for museums, restaurants and local transport on the exact date. A visit that requires advance booking can be the starting point for the rest of the plan.
5. Keep a weather alternative. A museum, a nearby town or a slower day avoids making the whole trip depend on a single outdoor excursion.

Families should compare these dates with the school and regional calendar: school holidays and additional school closures may extend beyond national holidays.

Public holidays, working days and patron saints

The difference between festivo and feriale matters when travelling in Italy, particularly on bus timetables. Sundays and recognised public holidays are festivi; Saturday is normally feriale, even if it is your day off. Prefestivo means the day before a holiday; it does not automatically turn Saturday into a public holiday.

Remember the local patron saint’s day too. It is specific to each city and may create another opportunity to travel, while also affecting offices and services at your destination. Whether it is a day off work depends on the workplace and the applicable employment contract.

See patron saints and local holiday dates for 111 Italian cities

For other towns, consult the municipality or official tourism website. Celebrations may last several days, and the event programme does not always coincide with the recognised local holiday.

Which celebrations count as public holidays?

Carnival, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day and Good Friday are not national public holidays in Italy. A religious or civic celebration does not automatically mean a day off. Saint Francis’s Day on 4 October becomes a national holiday from 2026. Plan around recognised holidays and your own work schedule.