Back at work blues? Here’s how to turn public holidays into 9–16 day breaks in 2026 using minimal annual leave.
Three weeks into January your holiday glow is fading and reality is starting to sink in.
If trading long days at the beach for long days in the office got you feeling some type of way…same.
But luckily there’s an easy cure for post-holiday-itus… and that’s to book another holiday!
If your leave balance is near zero after this recent break, don’t stress, we’ve done all the annual leave maths for you to maximise your days off with the least amount of leave possible (you’re welcome).
Public holiday: Monday 26 January
Leave dates: Tuesday 27 January to Friday 30 January
Annual leave used: 4 days
Total days off: 9 days
Public holiday: Monday 2 March
Leave dates: Tuesday 3 March to Friday 6 March
Annual leave used: 4 days
Total days off: 9 days
Public holiday: Monday 9 March
Leave dates: Tuesday 10 March to Friday 13 March
Annual leave used: 4 days
Total days off: 9 days
Public holiday: Friday 3 April & Monday 6 April
Leave dates (Option 1): Monday 30 March to Thursday 2 April
Leave dates (Option 2): Tuesday 7 April to Friday 10 April
Annual leave used: 4 days
Total days off: 10 days (or combine both leave dates for 16 days off)
Public holiday: Monday 4 May
Leave dates: Tuesday 5 May to Friday 8 May
Annual leave used: 4 days
Total days off: 9 days
Public holiday: Monday 8 June
Leave dates: Tuesday 9 June to Friday 12 June
Annual leave used: 4 days
Total days off: 9 days
Public holiday: Friday 25 September (TBC subject to AFL schedule)
Leave dates: Monday 21 September to Thursday 24 September
Annual leave used: 4 days
Total days off: 9 days
Public holiday: Monday 28 September
Leave dates: Tuesday 29 September to Thursday 1 October
Annual leave used: 4 days
Total days off: 9 days
Public holiday: Tuesday 3 November
Leave dates: Monday 2 November + Wednesday 4 November to Friday 6 November
Annual leave used: 4 days
Total days off: 9 days
Public holiday: Monday 5 October
Leave dates: Tuesday 6 October to Friday 9 October
Annual leave used: 4 days
Total days off: 9 days
Public holiday: Friday 25 December, Monday 28 December, Friday 1 January (2027)
Leave dates: Monday 21 December to Thursday 24 December + Tuesday 29 December to Thursday 31 December
Annual leave used: 7 days
Total days off: 16 days
Source: 2026 public holidays - Fair Work Ombudsman
Everyone knows, life feels 20% better when you’ve got a holiday on the horizon, so don’t be shy, put in that annual leave request!
Sign up for Flux and join 100,000 members of the Flux family
