Sydneysiders like to work hard, but we also like to kick back beach or in a sun-soaked the beer garden. If you want to work smarter, not harder in 2025, listen up. We’ve discovered how to maximize your holiday time next year by turning 20 days of annual leave into over 50. NSW enjoys 11 bank holidays each year. Our advice? Block your leave as soon as possible (before your colleagues beat you).

Christmas 2024 and New Year’s Eve 2025

You can turn just seven days of annual leave into a 16-day holiday by making the most of your bank holidays over the festive period. By taking December 23-24, 27, 30-31 and January 2-3 off, you’ll get an epic 16-day break from Saturday, December 21 to Sunday, January 5.

Days off: 16 days (December 21, 2024 – January 5, 2025)

Leave it used: Seven days

26 January 2025 public holiday

Whether you call it Invasion Day, Survival Day or Australia Day, January 26 is a Sunday in 2025, so the public holiday will land on Monday, January 27. If you take Friday before or Tuesday after rest, you can change to a four-day long weekend. Alternatively, take Tuesday January 28 to Friday January 31 off for a glorious nine-day break.

Days off: Nine days (January 25-February 2)

Leave it used: Four days

Easter and Anzac Day 2025

Easter falls in mid-April next year, with Anzac Day landing just a week after. You could score a ten-day break from Good Friday between April 18 and April 27 – for the price of just three days off between April 22-24. Talk about #winning!

Days off: Ten days (April 18-27)

Leave it used: Three days

The King’s Birthday 2025

You can once again turn the King’s Birthday public holiday (Monday 9 June) into a four-day weekend by taking just one day off on Friday 6 June or Tuesday 10 June. But we suggest you do it all and take four days. of annual leave from Tuesday 10 June to Friday 13 June for an epic nine-day holiday. Euro summer anyone?

Days off: Nine days (June 7-15)

Leave it used: Four days

Labor Day 2025

Labor Day offers another “buy one, get four off” situation. Here in NSW, Labor Day 2025 falls on Monday 6 October. Simply take Tuesday through Friday to be rewarded with nine days off. Data to track includes:

Days off: Nine days

Leave taken: Four days

Christmas 2025 and New Year 2026

For the planners among us, we also have hacks for the 2025/26 festive period. With Christmas Day on Thursday and Boxing Day on Friday, you only need to take three days off to be rewarded with a much longer break (11 days) from Thursday 25 December to Sunday 4 January.

Days off: 11 days (December 25 – January 4)

Leave taken: Three days

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