By strategically booking holidays around key public holidays, employees in certain Australian states can come out on top when it comes to maximising their annual leave in 2025. In fact, employees in most states can convert 20 days of leave into 53 days off next year. Here’s how.
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As we here at Escape are in the business of travel and holidays, we are quick to jump on any tips or tricks that allow us to maximise time indulging our passion for … not working.
So we snapped to attention when the email instructing us how to hack our annual leave next year landed in our inbox.
Corporate Traveller, part of the Flight Centre Travel Group has scoured the calendar and crunched the numbers to show how employees can more than double their annual leave in 2025.
There are actually more opportunities to leverage national public holidays in 2025 than this year, based on where the public holidays fall (a fact that makes our hearts sing).
Some states and territories fare better than others
There are between 8-10 national public holidays in Australia each year, with some states and territories boasting an extra one or two public holidays. It plays out like this:
Workers in Victoria lead the states: they can turn 21 days of leave into an impressive 57 days off by strategically booking around public holidays.
In the ACT, employees can enjoy up to 56 days of total leave
Workers in Western Australia, South Australia, Tasmania, and the Northern Territory can stretch their 20 days of annual leave to 53 days.
Meanwhile, poor ol’ NSW drops to the end of the list: employees can strategically transform their 20 days of leave into 50 days off — fewer than their counterparts in most other states.
Here’s how to maximise your annual leave in 2025
You need to strategically book holidays around key national public holidays:
Ease into 2025 with a 16-day break this Christmas (between December 21 and January 6, 2025) by combining seven days of annual leave with the December 25, December 26 and January 1 public holidays.
Get a nine-day break for the price of four this Australia Day. The Australia Day public holiday falls on Monday, January 27 to give Aussies a three-day weekend. By dipping into four days of annual leave (from Tuesday, January 28 to Friday, January 31) you can get a nine-day break from Saturday, January 25 to Sunday, February 2.
Double your Easter break – April is the next prime time workers can nab a long break with strategically booked leave. That’s thanks to three days of Easter and ANZAC public holidays just four days apart. Employees can more than double their leave by taking just seven days of annual leave on 14-17 and 22-24 April, for a 16-day break spanning Saturday 12 to Sunday 27 April.
Celebrate the King’s birthday with a nine-day getaway. The King’s Birthday public holiday falls on Monday, October 6 in Queensland, Monday, September 29 in Western Australia, and Monday, June 9 in all other states and territories. By four days of annual leave from the Tuesday to the Friday in the same week, employees can nab a nine-day break.
Enjoy a nine-day break over Labour Day: Similarly, Labour Day falls on a different Monday across six states and the ACT (March 3 in WA, March 10 in Victoria, May 5 in Queensland, October 6 in NSW, ACT & SA). You can add four days of annual leave on the Tuesday to the Friday in that same week to get a nine-day holiday, including the weekends.
Wrap up 2025 with a 16-day holiday. For the organised travellers out there, the 2025 Christmas period presents another prime chance to maximise public holidays to turbocharge your annual leave with seven days of annual leave transforming into an extended break. Next year, Christmas Day and Boxing Day fall on Thursday, December 25 and Friday, December 26. By taking seven days of leave (Monday, December 22 to Wednesday, December 24; Monday, December 29 to Tuesday, December 30 and Friday, 2 January) you can again nab a 16-day break from Saturday, December 20 through to Sunday, January 4, 2026.
Corporate Traveller’s tips on how to maximise state and territory specific public holidays
Get out your calendar and start strategically planning a very chill 2025.
Victorians can take four-day and three-day holidays around Melbourne Cup Day and AFL Grand Final with just one day of annual leave. Lucky Victorians can increase their holidays to 57 days, by taking just 21 days’ annual leave in total. Next year’s Melbourne Cup Day is Tuesday, November 4. By taking one day of leave on Monday, November 3, Victorians can enjoy a four-day break from Saturday, November 1 to Tuesday, November 4. While the date is yet to be set, Victorians can also look forward to a Friday off before next year’s AFL Grand Final around October – with no annual leave days required.
ACT employees get 56 days of holiday with just 20 days’ annual leave. ACT employees don’t need to strategically plan any further annual leave to score 56 days of holiday. They get two additional three-day weekends around Canberra Day on Monday, March 10 and Reconciliation Day on Monday, June 2.
Brisbane workers can nab a five-day mini break around the Ekka Public Holiday. Brisbane workers can increase their holidays to 55 days with just 22 days’ annual leave. Next year, Brisbane’s Ekka Public Holiday is on Wednesday, August 13. Employees can maximise the day off by taking two days off (from Thursday 14 to Friday August 15) to get a five-day break from Wednesday 13 to Sunday August 17.
Get bang for your buck next Western Australia Day. Next year, Western Australia Day falls on Monday, June 2. This extra public holiday enables WA workers to take a three-day weekend – increasing their holidays to 53 days, with no additional annual leave. And by taking four days off (from Tuesday, June 3 to Friday, June 6), to secure a nine-day holiday from Saturday, May 31 to Sunday, June 8, employees can increase their holidays to 59 days with just 24 days’ annual leave.
Tasmanian workers get an extra-long weekend with no annual leave required. While Tasmania doesn’t observe Labour Day, Tasmanian workers will be gifted two long weekends around Eight Hours Day (Monday, March 10) and the Royal Hobart Regatta (Monday, February 10) or Recreation Day (Monday, November 3). This allows them to take a total of 53 days of holidays with just 20 days of annual leave.
Secure two nine-day breaks around May Day and Picnic Day in the NT. Similarly, the Northern Territory doesn’t observe Labour Day – but the two additional public holidays (May Day on Monday, May 5 next year and Picnic Day on Monday, August 4) more than make up for that. By enjoying that additional long weekend, employees increase their holidays to 53 days with just 20 days’ annual leave.
South Australians get an extra long weekend around Adelaide Cup Day. With Adelaide Cup Day falling on Monday March 10 next year, South Australians can enjoy a long weekend – extending their total holidays to 53 days with just 20 days of annual leave.
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