Public holidays in Switzerland in 2026

Whether you’re living in Switzerland or just visiting, it’s important to note the dates of Switzerland’s public holidays (French: feiertagun, German: jour férié) and important dates. This is because, on some of these dates, businesses and public institutions will close or have reduced hours.

For travelers and expats, holidays also require some financial planning. Whether you’re budgeting for festival attendance, purchasing gifts, or planning getaways, managing your money across borders can be challenging. Using services like Wise can offer competitive exchange rates and transparent fees for currency conversion.

An overview of public holidays in Switzerland

The most important holiday in Switzerland is Swiss National Day on 1 August. This is also technically the only official federal holiday in the country.

While some Swiss vacations are observed across the nation, other festivities are only marked in specific regions. Many of these celebrations are based on religion and are usually only held in the cantons where Christianity is observed. This means that not all cantons across Switzerland have the same public holidays. It varies from nine to 15 days each year.

If a Swiss national holiday falls on a Tuesday or a Thursday, workers may take either the Monday or Friday off to create a long weekend. What’s more, some cantons and organizations may allocate a weekday off if the public holiday falls on a weekend.

Some also coincide with Switzerland’s festivals, which is a great opportunity to travel and experience the country’s traditional culture.

If you’re planning to attend these celebrations, it’s worth preparing financially, especially if you’re traveling from abroad. Using the Wise account to convert your currency at the mid-market exchange rate can help you avoid the inflated tourist rates often found at airport kiosks and local exchange offices during busy holiday periods.

When are Switzerland’s public holidays in 2026?

These holidays are celebrated nationally throughout Switzerland:

Date	Weekday	Public holiday
1 January 2026	Thu	New Year’s Day
14 May 2026	Thu	Ascension Day
1 August 2026	Sat	National Day
25 December 2026	Fri	Christmas Day

Local (religious) holidays in 2026

Some (religious) holidays are only observed in certain cantons in Switzerland:

Dates	Weekday	Holiday	Where celebrated
2 January 2026	Fri	Berchtold’s Day	Aargau, Bern, Fribourg, Glarus, Jura, Lucerne, Neuchâtel, Obwalden, Schaffhausen, Solothurn, Thurgau, Vaud, Zug, Zurich
6 January 2026	Tue	Epiphany	Graubünden, Lucerne, Schwyz, Ticino, Uri
12 February 2026	Thu	Carnival Thursday (half day)	Schwyz
19 March 2026	Thu	St Joseph’s Day	Nidwalden, Schwyz, Solothurn, Ticino, Uri, Valais
3 April 2026	Fri	Good Friday	All cantons except Ticino and Valais (though stores are closed in Valais)
6 April 2026	Mon	Easter Monday	All cantons except Valais
25 May 2026	Mon	Whit Monday	All cantons except Valais
4 June 2026	Thu	Corpus Christi	Aargau, Appenzell Innerrhoden, Fribourg, Grisons, Jura, Lucerne, Nidwalden, Obwalden, Schwyz, Solothurn, Ticino, Uri, Valais, Zug
29 June 2026	Mon	Saints Peter and Paul	Ticino, and some areas of Graubünden and Lucerne
15 August 2026	Sat	Assumption of Mary	Appenzell Innerrhoden, Fribourg, Jura, Lucerne, Nidwalden, Obwalden, Schwyz, Solothurn, Ticino, Uri, Valais, Zug
21 September 2026	Mon	Lundi du Jeûne	Vaud, and an unofficial holiday in Neuchâtel when stores are closed
22 September 2026	Tue	Saint Mauritius Day	Appenzell Innerrhoden (except Oberegg District)
25 September 2026	Fri	Saint Nicholas of Flüe	Obwalden
2 October 2026	Fri	Schutzengelfest	Lucerne
1 November 2026	Sun	All Saints’ Day	Aargau, Appenzell Innerrhoden, Fribourg, Glarus, Jura, Lucerne, Nidwalden, Obwalden, Schwyz, Solothurn, St Gallen, Ticino, Uri, Valais, Zug
8 December 2026	Tue	Immaculate Conception	Aargau, Appenzell Innerrhoden, Fribourg, Graubünden, Lucerne, Nidwalden, Obwalden, Schwyz, Solothurn, Ticino, Uri, Valais, Zug
26 December 2026	Sat	Saint Stephen’s Day	All except Geneva, Jura, Valais, and Vaud

Local (cultural) holidays in 2026

Date(s)	Weekday(s)	Holiday	Where celebrated
1 March 2026	Sun	Republic Day – commemorates the declaration of the Republic in 1848	Neuchâtel
9 April 2026	Thu	Näfels Ride – commemorating the battle of Näfels in 1388	Glarus
20 April 2026	Mon	Sechseläuten – “The six o’clock ringing of the bells”	Zurich
1 May 2026	Fri	Labor Day / May Day	Basel-Landschaft, Basel-Stadt, Jura, Neuchâtel, Schaffhausen, Solothurn, Thurgau, Ticino, Zurich
23 June 2026	Tue	Jura Independence Day	Jura
10 September 2026	Thu	Jeûne Genevois	Geneva
12–14 September 2026	Sat–Mon	Knabenschiessen	Zurich
12 December 2026	Sat	L’Escalade	Geneva
31 December 2026	Thu	Restoration Day	Geneva

Other important dates in 2026

Alongside the official holidays, it’s a good idea to mark the following dates in your calendar. These occasions are observed across Switzerland:

Date(s)	Weekday	Occasion
12–17 February 2026	Thu-Tue	Carnival
10 May 2026	Sun	Mother’s Day
7 June 2026	Sun	Father’s Day
20 September 2026	Sun	Swiss Federal Fast
31 December 2026	Thu	New Year’s Eve

When are Switzerland’s public holidays in 2027?

Date	Weekday	Public holiday
1 January 2027	Fri	New Year’s Day
6 May 2027	Thu	Ascension Day
1 August 2027	Sun	National Day
25 December 2027	Sat	Christmas Day

Local (religious) holidays in 2027

Dates	Weekday	Holiday	Where celebrated
2 January 2027	Sat	Berchtold’s Day	Aargau, Bern, Fribourg, Glarus, Jura, Lucerne, Neuchâtel, Obwalden, Schaffhausen, Solothurn, Thurgau, Vaud, Zug, Zurich
6 January 2027	Wed	Epiphany	Graubünden, Lucerne, Schwyz, Ticino, Uri
4 February 2027	Thu	Carnaval Thursday (half day)	Schwyz
19 March 2027	Fri	St Joseph’s Day	Nidwalden, Schwyz, Solothurn, Ticino, Uri, Valais
26 March 2027	Fri	Good Friday	All cantons except Ticino and Valais (though stores are closed in Valais)
29 March 2027	Mon	Easter Monday	All cantons except Valais
17 May 2027	Mon	Whit Monday	All cantons except Valais
27 May 2027	Thu	Corpus Christi	Aargau, Appenzell Innerrhoden, Fribourg, Grisons, Jura, Lucerne, Nidwalden, Obwalden, Schwyz, Solothurn, Ticino, Uri, Valais, Zug
29 June 2027	Tue	Saints Peter and Paul	Ticino, and some areas of Graubünden and Lucerne
15 August 2027	Sun	Assumption of Mary	Appenzell Innerrhoden, Fribourg, Jura, Lucerne, Nidwalden, Obwalden, Schwyz, Solothurn, Ticino, Uri, Valais, Zug
20 September 2027	Mon	Lundi du Jeûne	Vaud, and an unofficial holiday in Neuchâtel when stores are closed
22 September 2027	Wed	Saint Mauritius Day	Appenzell Innerrhoden (except Oberegg District)
25 September 2027	Sat	Saint Nicholas of Flüe	Obwalden
2 October 2027	Sat	Schutzengelfest	Lucerne
1 November 2027	Mon	All Saints’ Day	Aargau, Appenzell Innerrhoden, Fribourg, Glarus, Jura, Lucerne, Nidwalden, Obwalden, Schwyz, Solothurn, St Gallen, Ticino, Uri, Valais, Zug
8 December 2027	Wed	Immaculate Conception	Aargau, Appenzell Innerrhoden, Fribourg, Graubünden, Lucerne, Nidwalden, Obwalden, Schwyz, Solothurn, Ticino, Uri, Valais, Zug
26 December 2027	Sun	Saint Stephen’s Day	All except Geneva, Jura, Valais, and Vaud

Local (cultural) holidays in 2027

Date(s)	Weekday(s)	Holiday	Where celebrated
1 March 2027	Mon	Republic Day – commemorates the declaration of the Republic in 1848	Neuchâtel
1 April 2027	Thu	Näfels Ride – commemorating the battle of Näfels in 1388	Glarus
19 April 2027	Mon	Sechseläuten – “The six o’clock ringing of the bells”	Zurich
1 May 2027	Sat	Labor Day / May Day	Basel-Landschaft, Basel-Stadt, Jura, Neuchâtel, Schaffhausen, Solothurn, Thurgau, Ticino, Zurich
23 June 2027	Wed	Jura Independence Day	Jura
9 September 2027	Thu	Jeûne Genevois	Geneva
11–13 September 2027	Sat–Mon	Knabenschiessen	Zurich
12 December 2027	Sun	L’Escalade	Geneva
31 December 2027	Fri	Restoration Day	Geneva

Other important dates in 2027

Date(s)	Weekday	Occasion
4-9 February 2027	Thu–Tue	Carnival
9 May 2027	Sun	Mother’s Day
6 June 2027	Sun	Father’s Day
19 September 2027	Sun	Swiss Federal Fast
31 December 2027	Fri	New Year’s Eve

When were Switzerland’s public holidays in 2025?

Date	Weekday	Public holiday
1 January 2025	Wed	New Year’s Day
29 May 2025	Thu	Ascension Day
1 August 2025	Fri	National Day
25 December 2025	Thu	Christmas Day

Local (religious) holidays in 2025

Local (cultural) holidays in 2025

Date(s)	Weekday(s)	Holiday	Where celebrated
1 March 2025	Sat	Republic Day – commemorates the declaration of the Republic in 1848	Neuchâtel
3 April 2025	Thu	Näfels Ride – commemorating the battle of Näfels in 1388	Glarus
28 April 2025	Mon	Sechseläuten – “The six o’clock ringing of the bells”	Zurich
1 May 2025	Thu	Labor Day / May Day	Basel-Landschaft, Basel-Stadt, Jura, Neuchâtel, Schaffhausen, Solothurn, Thurgau, Ticino, Zurich
23 June 2025	Mon	Jura Independence Day	Jura
11 September 2025	Thu	Jeûne Genevois	Geneva
13–15 September 2025	Sat–Mon	Knabenschiessen	Zurich
12 December 2025	Fri	L’Escalade	Geneva
31 December 2025	Wed	Restoration Day	Geneva

Other important dates in 2025

Date(s)	Weekday	Occasion
27 February – 4 March 2025	Thu-Tue	Carnival
11 May 2025	Sun	Mother’s Day
1 June 2025	Sun	Father’s Day
21 September 2025	Sun	Swiss Federal Fast
31 December 2025	Wed	New Year’s Eve

When are the school holidays in Switzerland?

Many of the Swiss school holidays also align with the country’s public holidays. It’s also a great opportunity to explore Switzerland’s culture and landscape with your children.

To find out when they are, read about school holidays in Switzerland.