Maximise Annual Leave in Queensland

Public holidays and long-weekend bridges for 2026–2027 · capital: Brisbane

Plan annual leave around Queensland public holidays with current dates, Ekka locality notes and practical bridge opportunities for your state.

Royal Queensland Show (Ekka) is observed in the Brisbane area, usually in August. Labour Day is the first Monday in May; King's Birthday is in late October. Below are every Queensland public holiday for 2026 and 2027, drawn from the Fair Work Ombudsman and the Queensland government, followed by the dates worth spending leave on.

Queensland public holidays, 2026 & 2027

Date	Public holiday	Type
Thu 1 Jan 2026	New Year's Day	National
Mon 26 Jan 2026	Australia Day	National
Fri 3 Apr 2026	Good Friday	National
Sat 4 Apr 2026	Easter Saturday	State/Territory
Sun 5 Apr 2026	Easter Sunday	State/Territory
Mon 6 Apr 2026	Easter Monday	National
Sat 25 Apr 2026	Anzac Day	National
Mon 4 May 2026	Labour Day	State/Territory
Wed 12 Aug 2026	Royal Queensland Show (Brisbane area only)	State/Territory
Mon 5 Oct 2026	King's Birthday	State/Territory
Fri 25 Dec 2026	Christmas Day	National
Sat 26 Dec 2026	Boxing Day	National
Mon 28 Dec 2026	Additional public holiday (Boxing Day) (Boxing Day falls on Saturday)	State/Territory
Fri 1 Jan 2027	New Year's Day	National
Tue 26 Jan 2027	Australia Day	National
Fri 26 Mar 2027	Good Friday	National
Sat 27 Mar 2027	Easter Saturday	State/Territory
Sun 28 Mar 2027	Easter Sunday	State/Territory
Mon 29 Mar 2027	Easter Monday	National
Mon 26 Apr 2027	Anzac Day (Monday) (Observed Monday as 25 April is Sunday)	National
Mon 3 May 2027	Labour Day	State/Territory
Wed 11 Aug 2027	Royal Queensland Show (Brisbane area only)	State/Territory
Mon 4 Oct 2027	King's Birthday	State/Territory
Sat 25 Dec 2027	Christmas Day	National
Sun 26 Dec 2027	Boxing Day	National
Mon 27 Dec 2027	Additional public holiday (Christmas Day) (Christmas Day falls on Saturday)	State/Territory
Tue 28 Dec 2027	Additional public holiday (Boxing Day) (Boxing Day falls on Sunday)	State/Territory

Public-holiday dataset rechecked 20 July 2026 against the release source register. Regional holidays may vary within Queensland; confirm before booking.

How to maximise Queensland public holidays

If you are searching for how to maximise Queensland public holidays, begin with the dates that fall on a Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday, then test the days either side of each holiday. For Queensland workers, the Brisbane Ekka holiday, the May Labour Day, the late-year King's Birthday, Easter, and Christmas-New Year are the key state-specific anchors. The calculator then ranks those options against your leave balance rather than assuming every long weekend is equally valuable.

What makes Queensland different

Queensland's local show holidays are the major source of regional variation. Brisbane observes the Royal Queensland Show holiday, commonly called the Ekka holiday, while other council areas nominate their own show day. The statewide Labour Day and King's Birthday weekends remain consistent planning anchors, but Brisbane-specific opportunities should not be copied blindly to Cairns, Townsville, Toowoomba, or regional workplaces. Confirm the local government area and work location before booking.

The complete ranked leave bridges

These tables are generated from the same public-holiday data and bridge-finding rules used by the calculator. Every single, double, and triple bridge accepted by the optimiser is shown, ranked first by calendar days off per leave day, then by break length. Equal-looking rows can use different holiday anchors or leave dates.

2026 complete ranked bridge table

2027 complete ranked bridge table

Queensland 2027 state-school dates were checked against the Department of Education future-dates calendar. School-holiday dates apply to government schools and can differ for non-government schools.

How to plan your Queensland leave

The four strategies in the calculator suit different goals. Maximum Days Off chases raw efficiency; Longest Break stacks leave into one big trip; Balanced Year spreads breaks across the seasons; and Long Weekends turns single leave days into frequent three- and four-day weekends. Parents can switch on the school-holidays option to line breaks up with Queensland school terms.

Related guides

By holiday: Easter · Christmas & New Year · King's Birthday · Anzac Day · Labour Day · Australia Day.

Other states: New South Wales · Victoria · Western Australia · South Australia · Tasmania · Australian Capital Territory · Northern Territory.

Start with the complete strategy guide.