Long weekends in the United States, 2026
2026 has 11 public holidays, and every one of them gives you a weekday off. The best bridge: 4 days off for 1 day of leave around New Year's Day.
The best bridges in 2026
Each public holiday on a weekday, with the leave that stretches it furthest.
- Thu, Jan 1
New Year's Day
- Best value
4 days off for 1 day of leave · Thu, Jan 1 to Sun, Jan 4
Take off: Fri, Jan 2
- Best value
- Mon, Jan 19
Martin Luther King Jr. Day
- Free long weekend
3 days off, no leave needed · Sat, Jan 17 to Mon, Jan 19
- Best value
4 days off for 1 day of leave · Fri, Jan 16 to Mon, Jan 19
Take off: Fri, Jan 16
- Longest break
10 days off for 5 days of leave · Sat, Jan 10 to Mon, Jan 19
Take off: Mon, Jan 12 to Fri, Jan 16
- Free long weekend
- Mon, Feb 16
Washington's Birthday
- Free long weekend
3 days off, no leave needed · Sat, Feb 14 to Mon, Feb 16
- Best value
4 days off for 1 day of leave · Fri, Feb 13 to Mon, Feb 16
Take off: Fri, Feb 13
- Longest break
10 days off for 5 days of leave · Sat, Feb 7 to Mon, Feb 16
Take off: Mon, Feb 9 to Fri, Feb 13
- Free long weekend
- Mon, May 25
Memorial Day
- Free long weekend
3 days off, no leave needed · Sat, May 23 to Mon, May 25
- Best value
4 days off for 1 day of leave · Fri, May 22 to Mon, May 25
Take off: Fri, May 22
- Longest break
10 days off for 5 days of leave · Sat, May 16 to Mon, May 25
Take off: Mon, May 18 to Fri, May 22
- Free long weekend
- Fri, Jun 19
Juneteenth
- Free long weekend
3 days off, no leave needed · Fri, Jun 19 to Sun, Jun 21
- Best value
4 days off for 1 day of leave · Thu, Jun 18 to Sun, Jun 21
Take off: Thu, Jun 18
- Longest break
10 days off for 5 days of leave · Fri, Jun 12 to Sun, Jun 21
Take off: Fri, Jun 12 and Mon, Jun 15 to Thu, Jun 18
- Free long weekend
- Fri, Jul 3
Independence Day
- Free long weekend
3 days off, no leave needed · Fri, Jul 3 to Sun, Jul 5
- Best value
4 days off for 1 day of leave · Thu, Jul 2 to Sun, Jul 5
Take off: Thu, Jul 2
- Longest break
10 days off for 5 days of leave · Fri, Jun 26 to Sun, Jul 5
Take off: Fri, Jun 26 and Mon, Jun 29 to Thu, Jul 2
- Free long weekend
- Mon, Sep 7
Labor Day
- Free long weekend
3 days off, no leave needed · Sat, Sep 5 to Mon, Sep 7
- Best value
4 days off for 1 day of leave · Fri, Sep 4 to Mon, Sep 7
Take off: Fri, Sep 4
- Longest break
10 days off for 5 days of leave · Sat, Aug 29 to Mon, Sep 7
Take off: Mon, Aug 31 to Fri, Sep 4
- Free long weekend
- Mon, Oct 12
Columbus Day
- Free long weekend
3 days off, no leave needed · Sat, Oct 10 to Mon, Oct 12
- Best value
4 days off for 1 day of leave · Fri, Oct 9 to Mon, Oct 12
Take off: Fri, Oct 9
- Longest break
10 days off for 5 days of leave · Sat, Oct 3 to Mon, Oct 12
Take off: Mon, Oct 5 to Fri, Oct 9
- Free long weekend
- Wed, Nov 11
Veterans Day
- Best value
5 days off for 2 days of leave · Sat, Nov 7 to Wed, Nov 11
Take off: Mon, Nov 9, Tue, Nov 10
- Longest break
10 days off for 5 days of leave · Fri, Nov 6 to Sun, Nov 15
Take off: Fri, Nov 6, Mon, Nov 9, Tue, Nov 10, and Thu, Nov 12, Fri, Nov 13
- Best value
- Thu, Nov 26
Thanksgiving Day
- Best value
4 days off for 1 day of leave · Thu, Nov 26 to Sun, Nov 29
Take off: Fri, Nov 27
- Longest break
10 days off for 5 days of leave · Fri, Nov 20 to Sun, Nov 29
Take off: Fri, Nov 20, Mon, Nov 23 to Wed, Nov 25, and Fri, Nov 27
- Best value
- Fri, Dec 25
Christmas Day
- Free long weekend
3 days off, no leave needed · Fri, Dec 25 to Sun, Dec 27
- Best value
4 days off for 1 day of leave · Thu, Dec 24 to Sun, Dec 27
Take off: Thu, Dec 24
- Longest break
16 days off for 8 days of leave · Sat, Dec 19 to Sun, Jan 3
Take off: Mon, Dec 21 to Thu, Dec 24 and Mon, Dec 28 to Thu, Dec 31
- Free long weekend
Plan your leave for 2026
Tell it how many days of leave you have. It picks the breaks that give the most days off in a row.
40 days off in 10 breaks
Uses 10 days of leave
- Thu, Jan 1 to Sun, Jan 44 days off for 1 day of leave
- Fri, Jan 16 to Mon, Jan 194 days off for 1 day of leave
- Fri, Feb 13 to Mon, Feb 164 days off for 1 day of leave
- Fri, May 22 to Mon, May 254 days off for 1 day of leave
- Thu, Jun 18 to Sun, Jun 214 days off for 1 day of leave
- Thu, Jul 2 to Sun, Jul 54 days off for 1 day of leave
- Fri, Sep 4 to Mon, Sep 74 days off for 1 day of leave
- Fri, Oct 9 to Mon, Oct 124 days off for 1 day of leave
- Thu, Nov 26 to Sun, Nov 294 days off for 1 day of leave
- Thu, Dec 24 to Sun, Dec 274 days off for 1 day of leave
2026 at a glance
Public holidays in the United States, 2026
| Date | Day | Holiday |
|---|---|---|
| January 1Thursday | Thursday | New Year's Day |
| January 19Monday | Monday | Martin Luther King Jr. Day |
| February 16Monday | Monday | Washington's Birthday |
| May 25Monday | Monday | Memorial Day |
| June 19Friday | Friday | Juneteenth |
| July 3Friday | Friday | Independence Day (substitute day) |
| July 4Saturday | Saturday | Independence Day, Falls on a weekend |
| September 7Monday | Monday | Labor Day |
| October 12Monday | Monday | Columbus Day |
| November 11Wednesday | Wednesday | Veterans Day |
| November 26Thursday | Thursday | Thanksgiving Day |
| December 25Friday | Friday | Christmas Day |
Turn New Year's Day into a trip
Plan the days, the stays and the bookings in one itinerary, with your group, on Waiz.
Long weekends in the United States: questions
There are 11 public holidays in the United States in 2026, 11 of them on a weekday.
Taking 1 day of leave off around New Year's Day (Fri, Jan 2) gives you 4 days off in a row.
Spend leave next to public holidays that fall on a Tuesday, Thursday or a Monday or Friday next to a weekend. With 10 days of leave of leave, the planner above finds 40 days off in 2026.
Holiday dates from the date-holidays project (CC BY-SA 3.0), checked against official government sources. Company agreements and contracts can add or move days off; check yours before booking.
