Malta Public Holidays and National Days 2026-2027

Malta observes 14 official days off a year under the National Holidays and Other Public Holidays Act (Cap 252): 9 Public Holidays, mostly religious feasts, and 5 National Days, which mark specific events in Malta’s modern history. The two categories are legally distinct, not two names for the same thing, and this guide gives the 2026 and 2027 dates for both, plus what happens when one lands on a weekend.

What is the difference between a Public Holiday and a National Day in Malta?

Public Holidays are the 9 days set by Cap 252 that are mostly religious feasts tied to the Catholic calendar: New Year’s Day, the Feast of St Paul’s Shipwreck, the Feast of St Joseph, Good Friday, Workers’ Day, the Feast of Sts Peter and Paul, the Feast of the Assumption, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception and Christmas Day. National Days are the 5 days that commemorate specific events in Malta’s 20th-century political history rather than religious observances: Freedom Day, Sette Giugno, Victory Day, Independence Day and Republic Day. Both categories carry the same legal status as a day off work and school, and since 2021 both are treated the same way when one falls on a weekend (see below); the distinction mainly matters for understanding what each day is actually marking; a National Day gets a civic ceremony and speeches, a Public Holiday gets a Mass and, in many towns, a religious procession.

What are the 2026 and 2027 dates for Malta’s Public Holidays?

Note that Easter Sunday itself is not a separate public holiday in Malta; only Good Friday carries that status, though most businesses close on Sunday regardless.

What are the 2026 and 2027 dates for Malta’s National Days?

What happens when a Maltese public holiday falls on a weekend?

Since 1 January 2021, under an amendment to Cap 252 (Act IV of 2021), any Public Holiday or National Day that falls on a Saturday or Sunday adds one extra day to a worker’s annual paid leave entitlement instead of shifting to a weekday. This reversed a 2005 change and restored the pre-2005 system. In 2026, three days fall on a weekend this way: Sette Giugno (Sunday, 7 June), the Feast of the Assumption (Saturday, 15 August) and Republic Day (Sunday, 13 December), each adding a leave day rather than a day off in lieu. In 2027, Workers’ Day (Saturday, 1 May), the Feast of the Assumption (Sunday, 15 August) and Christmas Day (Saturday, 25 December) do the same. Malta observes more public days off a year than most other EU countries once both categories are counted, largely because of this 14-day combined total.

How are Malta’s main holidays marked?

• New Year’s Eve. Valletta’s fireworks and a street party along St Anne’s Street mark the turn of the year, alongside Imbuljuta tal-Qastan, a spiced chestnut drink traditionally served that night.
• Feast of St Paul’s Shipwreck (10 February). Commemorates the shipwreck described in Acts 28, dated to AD 60. Valletta holds the main Mass and street procession, centred on St Paul’s Shipwreck parish.
• Feast of St Joseph (19 March). Rabat and Mdina hold the main Mass and procession; most businesses close for the day.
• Good Friday. Processions run in fourteen towns in Malta and seven in Gozo, each with its own statues, and traffic is diverted from town centres to make way for them.
• Freedom Day (31 March). Marks the final withdrawal of British forces from Malta in 1979. Birgu holds a wreath-laying and gun salute at the Freedom Monument, and a regatta of traditional dgħajjes boats races across the Grand Harbour.
• Workers’ Day (1 May). Trade unions and political parties hold rallies and marches.
• Sette Giugno (7 June). Marks the 1919 riots in which British troops killed four Maltese protesting the rising cost of living. Valletta holds wreath-laying ceremonies at the Sette Giugno monument.
• Feast of Sts Peter and Paul, L-Imnarja (29 June). One of Malta’s oldest festivals, with roots in pre-Christian harvest customs. Buskett Gardens hosts an agricultural fair, horse races and traditional għana singing into the night.
• Feast of the Assumption, Santa Marija (15 August). Seven towns across Malta and Gozo hold processions with a statue of the Virgin Mary, brass bands and fireworks; it is the peak of Malta’s summer festa season.
• Victory Day (8 September). Marks three events on the same date: the lifting of the Great Siege of 1565, the end of the French blockade in 1800, and the end of Italian bombing in 1943. War memorials across the islands hold wreath-laying ceremonies.
• Independence Day (21 September). Marks independence from Britain in 1964. Floriana holds a morning ceremony at the Independence Monument, followed by an evening concert and fireworks over the Grand Harbour.
• Feast of the Immaculate Conception (8 December). Towns including Cospicua, Żejtun, Żabbar and Qrendi hold Mass, processions and fireworks.
• Republic Day (13 December). Marks Malta becoming a republic in 1974. Valletta holds a military parade and an evening concert with fireworks over the Grand Harbour.
• Christmas Day. Midnight Mass, nativity-crib displays, children’s processions and a Christmas lunch built around dishes like roast lampuki alongside imported staples such as panettone.

Are there days locals still work in Malta?

Malta has no day that is a public holiday for only part of the workforce; every one of the 14 days above is a day off for the whole country, in banks, government offices, schools and most private businesses, with only essential services (hospitals, emergency services, some hospitality and transport) staffed as usual. Some other days are widely marked without being a public holiday at all, so shops, offices and schools stay open: Mother’s Day (the second Sunday of May), Father’s Day (the third Sunday of June), and the hundreds of local village feasts (festi) held through spring and summer, each honouring a parish’s patron saint with fireworks and processions but affecting only that town for the day.

What are the Maltese school holidays in 2026-2027?

Malta’s state school calendar runs a long summer break and shorter breaks around Christmas and Easter. As a general pattern that has held for several years, expect a two-week Easter break that includes Good Friday, a summer break of roughly eleven weeks from mid-June to the end of September, and a two-week Christmas break spanning the turn of the year into early January. Confirm the exact 2026-2027 dates against the Ministry for Education’s published school calendar closer to each term, since Malta’s Ministry sets and publishes the school calendar annually rather than years in advance.

When is Daylight Saving Time in Malta in 2026 and 2027?

Malta follows the EU-wide schedule. Clocks move forward one hour at 2 a.m. on the last Sunday of March, 29 March 2026 and 28 March 2027, and back one hour at 3 a.m. on the last Sunday of October, 25 October 2026 and 31 October 2027.

Where to go in Malta during the holidays

Malta’s main sights stay open through most public holidays and National Days, with reduced hours on the specific day itself. Four places draw the most holiday visitors, from the full list of things to do in Malta.

1. Valletta. The capital’s narrow streets, St John’s Co-Cathedral and the Upper Barrakka Gardens stay busy through festa season and fill with lights, markets and concerts around Christmas.
2. The Blue Lagoon, Comino. The bay draws swimmers and snorkellers through the warmer public holidays; an early boat crossing or an early-morning swim avoids the worst of the midday crowds.
3. Malta’s Megalithic Temples. Sites including Ħaġar Qim, Mnajdra and Tarxien, among the oldest freestanding stone structures in the world, stay open on most public holidays with adjusted hours.
4. Sliema and St Julian’s. The northeast coast’s seafront promenades, restaurants and bars are at their busiest on summer holiday evenings.

For more on the country beyond its holiday calendar, see facts about Malta, Maltese people and places to visit in Malta, including Mdina and Birgu.

About the author. This guide is written and maintained by the Wonderful Wanderings editorial team. Wonderful Wanderings was founded in 2012 by Sofie Couwenbergh, and the team covers Malta for independent travellers, including the practical planning details, like which days are actually public holidays and which are National Days, that shape when shops, banks and transport run on a reduced schedule. This page is updated whenever Malta’s government changes a date or a rule.