How to maximise your annual leave in 2026 and get more days off
Boost your annual leave days for the coming year and get the most out of your time off. Here's how to maximise your annual leave days in 2025-26 by taking some strategic breaks.
Why it’s important to take annual leave
Most full-time workers in New Zealand are entitled to four weeks of paid annual leave a year. When used wisely, this time off can reap huge rewards for you, both personally and professionally. In fact, 81% of people feel that taking a holiday helps them feel more energised for work and aids productivity.
Get the most out of your annual leave by joining it with public holidays
Here’s how to stretch out 21 days of annual leave, in combination with weekends and public holidays, to get a very solid 55 days’ worth!
Christmas and New Year 2025-26
If you have a little extra leave leftover for the year or need to use up some leave before the end of 2025, you can look forward to a 13-day break by taking just six days off.
- Saturday 20 December: Weekend
- Sunday 21 December: Weekend
- Monday 22 December: Annual Leave (Take day off)
- Tuesday 23 December: Annual Leave (Take day off)
- Wednesday 24 December: Annual Leave (Take day off)
- Thursday 25 December: Christmas Day public holiday
- Friday 26 December: Boxing Day public holiday
- Saturday 27 December: Weekend
- Sunday 28 December: Weekend
- Monday 29 December: Annual Leave (Take day off)
- Tuesday 30 December: Annual Leave (Take day off)
- Wednesday 31 December: Annual Leave (Take day off)
- Thursday 1 January 2026: Public holiday
Waitangi Day 2026
Make the most of Waitangi Day by taking a day off afterwards to get a four-day weekend.
- Firday 6 February: Waitangi Day public holiday
- Saturday 7 February: Weekend
- Sunday 8 February: Weekend
- Monday 9 February: Annual leave (Take day off)
Easter & ANZAC Day 2026
Take four days off over Easter & ANZAC Day to get a 10-day holiday.
- Friday 3 April: Good Friday Public Holiday
- Saturday 4 April: Weekend
- Sunday 5 April : Easter Sunday (Weekend)
- Monday 6 April : Easter Monday Public Holiday
- Tuesday 7 April: Annual leave (Take day off)
- Wednesday 8 April: Annual leave (Take day off)
- Thursday 9 April: Annual leave (Take day off)
- Friday 10 April: Annual leave (Take day off)
- Saturday 11 April: Weekend
- Sunday 12 April: Weekend
King’s Birthday 2026
King’s Birthday falls on Monday 1 June, so why not take the Friday off for an extra-long weekend?
- Friday 29 May: Annual leave (Take day off)
- Saturday 30 May: Weekend
- Sunday 31 May: Weekend
- Monday 1 June: King’s Birthday public holiday
Matariki 2026
Our fourth Matariki public holiday is on Friday 10 June this year. Why not celebrate by taking the following Monday off for a four-day break?
- Friday 10 June: Matariki public holiday
- Saturday 11 June: Weekend
- Sunday 12 June: Weekend
- Monday 13 June: Annual leave (Take day off)
Labour Day 2026
Labour Day 2026 give Kiwis a nice break between Matariki and Christmas, especially if you take the Friday off beforehand.
- Friday 23 October: Annual leave (Take day off)
- Saturday 24 October: Weekend
- Sunday 25 October: Weekend
- Monday 26 October: Labour Day public holiday
Christmas and January 2026-27
If you want to get really organised for 2025, book in seven days of annual leave for a whopping 16-day break over the silly season!
- Saturday 19 December: Weekend
- Sunday 20 December: Weekend
- Monday 21 December: Annual leave (Take day off)
- Tuesday 22 December: Annual leave (Take day off)
- Wednesday 23 December: Annual leave (Take day off)
- Thursday 24 December: Annual leave (Take day off)
- Friday 25 December: Christmas Day public holiday
- Saturday 26 December: Boxing Day (weekend)
- Sunday 27 December: Weekend
- Monday 28 December: Additional public holiday for Boxing Day
- Tuesday 29 December: Annual leave (Take day off)
- Wednesday 30 December: Annual leave (Take day off)
- Thursday 31 December 2027: Annual leave (Take day off)
- Friday 1 January 2027: New Year’s Day public holiday
- Saturday 2 January 2027: Weekend
- Sunday 3 January 2027: Weekend
Even after all of this time off, you’ve still got two days of annual leave up your sleeve. You could use them to take time off for your birthday or join them together for a long weekend of your choosing. New Zealand also celebrates quite a few regional public holidays, so check out Employment New Zealand to find out when yours are.
Annual leave allows you to take a proper break from work and return feeling refreshed. It can also give you the time and space to think about new career directions or fresh ways of doing things. By looking at all the public holidays coming up in the next year, you can build an annual leave plan that maximises your chance to recharge your batteries.
Source: Independent research conducted by Nature of behalf of SEEK, interviewing 4000 Kiwis annually. Published November 2025.
