Anyone planning a move to Italy in 2026, preparing for a visit to a government office, or scheduling their next vacation should be well acquainted with the Italian public holiday calendar. It works differently from the German one: Italy does not shift holidays that fall on weekends, but it does have local patron saint feast days on which entire cities come to a standstill. And 2026 brings a genuine novelty, as for the first time in nearly 50 years the country will have 13 instead of 12 national public holidays.
New in 2026: San Francesco on October 4
Under Law No. 151 of October 8, 2025, published in the Gazzetta Ufficiale on October 10, 2025, Italy reinstates the feast day of Saint Francis of Assisi as a full statutory public holiday, effective January 1, 2026. October 4 was once a day off work but was abolished in 1977 as part of the austerity measures of that era. In 2026, however, the new holiday falls on a Sunday, so it will not yet translate into extra time off. It will have its first real impact in 2027, when it falls on a Monday and automatically extends the weekend.
A curious side note: in Bologna, practically nothing changes. The city already celebrates its patron saint, San Petronio, on October 4, so what was previously a purely local day off will simply be absorbed into the national holiday starting in 2026.
All National Public Holidays in 2026 at a Glance
The most important rule: no substitute day for holidays falling on weekends
Italy does not observe holiday substitutions. If a public holiday falls on a Sunday, employees are entitled only to a wage supplement under Law 260/1949, known as the festività non goduta, which appears on the payslip (busta paga). Holidays falling on a Saturday are lost entirely for anyone on a five-day workweek. In 2026, this affects no fewer than five dates: April 25 and August 15 (both Saturdays), October 4 and November 1 (both Sundays), and December 26 (Saturday).
Bridge Days in 2026: an excellent ponte year
Bridge days are known in Italy as ponti, literally "bridges," and 2026 is a particularly good year for them. Four public holidays fall on a Tuesday or Thursday, meaning that with just four vacation days it is possible to create four separate four-day breaks:
- New Year's Day (Thursday, January 1): Taking Friday, January 2 off results in four consecutive days through Sunday.
- Epifania (Tuesday, January 6): Monday, January 5 as the bridge day results in time off from January 3 through 6.
- Festa della Repubblica (Tuesday, June 2): Monday, June 1 as the bridge day results in time off from May 30 through June 2.
- Immacolata (Tuesday, December 8): Monday, December 7 as the bridge day results in time off from December 5 through 8. In Milan, December 7 is already a non-working day due to the city's patron saint, Sant'Ambrogio, so the four-day block there requires no vacation day at all.
In addition, there are automatically long weekends thanks to Easter Monday (April 6), May 1 (Friday), and Christmas (Friday).
A look ahead to 2027: the opposite picture
2027 looks considerably less favorable. Not a single national holiday falls on a Tuesday or Thursday; instead, Epifania, June 2, and Immacolata all land on a Wednesday, which requires two vacation days to bridge. Five holidays fall on weekends, including both Christmas days. Long weekends come only from New Year's Day (Friday), Easter Monday on March 29, San Francesco (Monday, October 4), and All Saints' Day (Monday, November 1). Anyone with flexible travel plans would do well to schedule longer trips in 2026 instead.
Patron saint feast days: when only your own city gets the day off
One quirk that regularly catches newcomers off guard: every Italian municipality has a patron saint, and that saint's feast day is a locally recognized public holiday. Government offices, banks, schools, and many shops close, and buses run on a Sunday schedule. Anyone who happens to have an appointment at the Comune or the Questura on that day will find the doors locked, while in a town just a few miles away it is a perfectly normal working day.
A few examples from the largest cities:
- Rome: Santi Pietro e Paolo on June 29 (a Monday in 2026, meaning a long weekend for Romans only).
- Milan: Sant'Ambrogio on December 7, the day immediately before Immacolata.
- Venice: San Marco on April 25. The date coincides with the national Liberation Day, so no additional day off is gained.
- Bologna: San Petronio on October 4, which from 2026 onward coincides with the new national holiday.
- Perugia: San Costanzo on January 29, in the middle of winter.
- Verona: San Zeno on May 21. The celebration marks the transfer of the saint's remains in 807, not his death in April.
- Reggio Calabria: two patron saints, in fact: civilly, San Giorgio is observed on April 23, while the major popular festival is the Madonna della Consolazione in September.
- Prato: Santo Stefano on December 26, which is subsumed into the national holiday.
Ferragosto: more than just a public holiday
The Feast of the Assumption on August 15, known as Ferragosto, is the emotional highlight of the Italian summer. Around this date, half of Italy goes on vacation: tradespeople's workshops, medical practices, and small city shops often close for two to three weeks, with the famous chiuso per ferie sign hanging on the door. Errand-running at government offices or scheduling tradespeople in August is best avoided altogether. The fact that Ferragosto 2026 falls on a Saturday makes no difference to the travel rush: beaches, highways, and hotel prices still peak around mid-August regardless.
Check all dates in the holiday tool
Anyone who wants the full details will find them in our free Holiday Tool for Italy all national holidays, the bridge day analysis, and the patron saint feast days of Italy's major cities, always kept up to date for the current year. Three rules of thumb to close:
- Never schedule appointments with authorities on the local patron saint's day. A quick check in the tool beforehand is highly recommended.
- August is best avoided for anything involving government offices, tradespeople, or suppliers.
- For the four ponti in 2026, booking early is essential as all of Italy has the same idea.
