How to make the most of your annual leave in 2025 

What if there was a way to take more holidays without worrying about running out of annual leave? There is!

We’ll show you how to make the most of the New Zealand public holidays in 2025 so you can get away on some must-do adventures. Whether it’s a relaxing long weekend or the chance to head overseas for a couple of weeks, get these dates in the diary and enjoy our tips for maximising your annual leave.

New Zealand public holidays 2025

As much as we all love a day off work, unless you’re a super-organised person you might find that public holidays have a habit of taking you by surprise. Rather than enjoying this bonus holiday you’re left regretting your lack of foresight and planning – if only you’d spotted that Easter and Anzac Day were so close together, you could have booked the days off in between and really had a chance to unwind! Let's make 2025 your year for holidays; here are the dates you need to know.

2025 Public Holidays

• New Year’s Day - January 1
• Day after New Year’s Day - January 2
• Waitangi Day – February 6
• Good Friday - April 18
• Easter Monday - April 21
• Anzac Day - April 25
• King's Birthday - June 2
• Matariki - June 20
• Labour Day - October 27
• Christmas Day - December 25
• Boxing Day - December 26

If you also have school holidays to think about, this is where they fall in 2025.

• Term 1: Saturday 12 April – Sunday 27 April
• Term 2: Saturday 28 June – Sunday 13 July
• Term 3: Saturday 20 September – Sunday 5 October
• Term 4: Varies between schools but no later than Saturday 20 December for 5 – 6 weeks.

Our top tips for taking time off

Aside from getting in ahead of your workmates to secure your time off and booking early to find the best travel and accommodation deals, here’s what we recommend.

Book an Easter getaway

April is looking like the best month to take a holiday in 2025, with Easter and Anzac Day landing in the same week. With NZ public holidays on Good Friday 18 April, Easter Monday 21 April and Anzac Day Friday 25 April, you could make a 16-day holiday by taking seven days of annual leave on 14 – 17 April and 22 – 24 April. 

This could be the perfect time for a family holiday as the kids will also be off school from Saturday 12 April to Sunday 27 April 2025.

Southlanders especially need to take advantage of this holiday break with Southland Anniversary Day on Tuesday 22 April, the day after Easter. This brings us to our next top tip...

Don’t forget your anniversary

And we don’t mean your wedding anniversary (although, what better way to celebrate that than with a holiday?!) Regional anniversary days often fall on a Monday so if you’re trying to find time for a long weekend here’s your opportunity. If like our friends down south your anniversary day falls close to another holiday you’ve got a real chance to maximise your leave.

If you’re in Hawke’s Bay, you’ll enjoy a blissful four-day weekend with your anniversary day on Friday 24 October followed by Labour Day on Monday 27. Book the extra days off either side (20-23  and 28-31 October) and, bingo, 16 days away with only eight days off work. Nelson Anniversary on Monday 3 February ties in nicely with Waitangi Day on Thursday 6 February. Take Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday off work, add in the weekend either side and you’ve found yourself a neat nine-day window for a holiday.

Where to go for longer holidays

So how best to use this time off? With a couple of weeks up your sleeve, an overseas holiday could certainly be on the cards.

Our pick for the long Easter break is a family trip to Thailand. It's still dry season there during April and with the temperatures sitting around 25°C - 30°C, it’s ideal for a beach holiday but not too hot for exploring ancient ruins or the city sights in Bangkok.

Some of our other favourite destinations for longer trips include:

1. Singapore – from shopping and eating to futuristic nature parks, there’s so much to see and do in this tiny but mind-blowing island country.
2. Japan – how about a ski holiday during the long Christmas break? Whether you’re an adventure enthusiast, a foodie, or keen to immerse yourself in Japanese culture, add this to your holiday wish-list.
3. Australia – but rather than the theme parks and beaches, how about an Australian road trip?

Where to go for short breaks

We’re all about maximising your annual leave, so even if you only have a few days off, there are plenty of fun and exciting options for holidays. Check out our top 10 summer staycation ideas for some inspiration.

Of course, with Australia and the Pacific Islands only a few hours’ flight from New Zealand, you could still make it there for a long weekend or a short week. Book the red-eye flight home and really make the most of your time away.

How about:

• A city break in Australia – we've got 15 things to keep you entertained in Melbourne for a long weekend.
• A family holiday in Australia – you don’t have to go for a long time to have a good time. There’s something here for everyone.
• The beautiful Pacific Islands – we really hope you have a little bit of time to enjoy the white sandy beaches and crystal-clear waters but resorts with kids’ clubs are also a great option if you need to keep the little ones entertained while you get some work done. We call it ‘working from holiday’ - it’s like working from home but better.

Don’t forget your travel insurance

You know what they say about even the best-laid plans... Unfortunately, things can still go wrong even when you've been meticulous about planning. Accidents can happen, people can fall sick, and travel plans can change. It can also happen on a holiday at home so think about domestic travel insurance to cover things like damage to a rental car or having to cancel pre-paid accommodation or activities, as well as a comprehensive policy for international trips.