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There are public holidays which are celebrated in all states & territories, though not necessarily on the same day. There are also public holidays which are identified with individual states or territories, with some only applying to particular areas within these. All can be found by using the links in the Australian Public Holidays section.
In addition, there are special days celebrated in Australia from Australia Day, through to the ‘the race that stops a nation’ - the Melbourne Cup. Details are listed separately below.
There are also links for several international special days. Included are links to special pages on this site for times such as Easter, Christmas and a Multifaith Calendar.
You should also check the Calendar pages, for special days celebrated in Australia and around the world.
Australian Public Holidays
State Public Holiday Listings
- Daylight Saving and Public Holidays in the ACT
All details are available in separate PDF downloads. - Public Holidays, NSW
Provided for 3 years including the present one. - Public Holidays, NT
Provides information about NT Public Holidays, Statutory Public Holidays and Regional Holidays. Dates for multiple years. - Public Holidays, Queensland
Provides Public Holidays, Show Holidays, Special Holidays, School Holidays and even Public Holiday employment entitlements. - Public Holidays, SA
Provides Public Holiday dates for multiple years. - Public Holidays in Tasmania
PDF downloads are available providing the dates for multiple years. - Public Holiday Dates, Victoria
Public Holidays dates are listed for multiple years. You can also access an Events Calendar from this page. - Public
Holidays, WA
Public Holiday dates are provided for multiple years. Specific Regional Dates for the Queen’s Birthdsay Public Holiday are also provided for the current year.
Portal Sites
- Australian Holidays
Click on ‘Holidays by Country’, select the year, and country [Australia] then click on ‘Show Holidays’. - Australian Public Holidays
A collection of information from OzTourism. Done by state/territory, and for multiple years. Note the section at the top relating to the actual dates on which the public holidays may be taken. - Calendars of Events
Again a presentation from australia.gov.au. Various calendars from culotural and religious events, environmental events, flags to fly on specific days and more. - Public Holidays
From australia.gov.au comes this set of links to Public Holiday listings from all states & territories, including some dependencies.
Australian Special Days
Anzac Day
- For all details relating to the history of Anzac Day, celebrations, programs, the Turkish viewpoint and other information, visit the separate Anzac Day page on this site.
Australia Day
- Annie’s Australia Day Page
- Australia Day - A History
- ‘Invasion’ Day
Another perspective. -
National Australia Day Information
National details can be found here, while the states and territories provide information through the following :
- Australian Capital Territory
- New South Wales
- Northern Territory
- Queensland
- South Australia
- Tasmania
- Victoria
- Western Australia
- Australian of the Year Awards
Covers what the awards are, nominations and recipients.
Other Special Days
- Birdsville Races
Go into the desert, drink and see horse racing. A social occasion. - Canberra Day
Part of a larger site. Covers history and the present day. - Clean Up Australia
Not a holiday, but ‘cleaning up’ Australia so it is a better place to be. Now exported to other countries. - Foundation Day [Western Australia]
- Labour Day
Check calendars for actual dates. Held on the first Monday in October in most states. - Melbourne Cup
History and other information about the ‘Cup’. The ‘race that stops a nation’. - National Tree Day
Planting millions of trees in Australia to try and replace those we have removed. - Proclamation Day [South Australia]
- Proclamation Day [Western Australia]
For further background information, you should also visit Proclamation Day information from the Constitutional Centre of WA. - Queen’s Birthday
Check calendars for actual dates. Held on the second Monday in June in all states bar Western Australia, where it is held in early October. - Remembrance Day
Remembering the end of The Great War.
International Special Days
April Fool’s Days
- April Fool’s Day [1]
A day for practical jokes. - April Fool’s Day [2]
- April Fool’s Day Origins
Examples and history from the Museum of Hoaxes. Also try their special page on Top 100 April Fool’s Day Hoaxes of All Time for some fascinating examples of what people around the world have done. - April Fool’s Day Origins
Short article with several references. - Wikipedia - April Fool’s Day [All Fools’ Day]
Information on history and concept. Embedded links.
Bastille Day
- Bastille Day [1]
- Bastille Day [2]
Celebrate the change from monarchy to a republic in France with a range of activities as well as the history of the event. - Bastille Day [3]
From Wikipedia.
Chinese New Year
- Chinese New Year [1]
- Chinese New Year [2]
The New Year, the calendar and much more via related links. -
Chinese New Year Festival
Sydney Chinese New Year celebrations. - Send a Chinese New Year ePostcard.
Christmas
- For all details relating to the history of Christmas, Religious meaning, traditions around the world, activities, crafts, music, Christmas cards, games, school-based material and other information, visit the separate Christmas page on this site.
Easter
- For all details relating to the history of Easter, Religious meaning, traditions around the world, activities, crafts, music, Easter cards, Easter Eggs, games, school-based material and other information, visit the separate Easter page on this site.
“Family” Days
- Father’s Day
Send dad an e-card, look at gifts, find history and more. US, so date does not match Australia. - Mother’s Day
The most important person in any family.
General Information
- A Global World
‘An international, global world calendar with Chinese, Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Islamic and Orthodox world religions and countries’ national holidays around the world, plus area codes, dialing codes, metric conversions and time zone maps’.
This is fee-based but quite reasonable. - Earth Calendar
‘The Earth Calendar is a daybook of holidays and celebrations around the world. For this web site a “holiday” is any day that recognizes a cultural event’. Find by date, country or religion or the search engine. - Holidays Round The Year
An extensive listing of holidays and special days done by months and also grouped under specific headings. - KidProj Multicultural Calendar
See how people celebrate special days and festivals in world countries. There is additional information and you can view in a number of languages. - List of Holidays by Country
‘This is the list of holidays by country. Most holidays are mentioned, although some are not public holidays’. - New Year’s Customs Worldwide
Find customs for New Year from different areas of the world. -
Public Holidays 2012, National Holidays by Country, 2012 Calendar with Holidays Around World
Public holidays for 2012 for countries from Albania to Zimbabwe. - World Holiday Calendars
Select an individual country, then ‘Customs & Cultures’ then ‘Holidays & Events’.
You now need to be a member to log in to access this site. Cost is fairly small for institutions. -
Worldwide Public Holidays News
‘The internet’s unique source of news and updates affecting international public holidays, bank holidays, national holidays, and non-working days’.
Halloween
- Halloween
Links to everything from ‘Pumpkin Patch’ to ‘Postcards’, to ‘Fonts’ and more. - Happy Halloween
Also music and history including information on the Mexican ‘Days of the Dead’. - How Halloween Works
Other Special Days
- Armistice Day
Celebrating the end of The Great War [World War 1]. - Boxing Day
Theories about the origins of Boxing Day. - Labor Day, The History of
History of Labour Day in the US. Similar to that in other countries which host this day. - May Day
May 1 celebrates an International Workers’ Day. Find how it stemmed from a pagan festival. For an Australian understanding, visit this site. -
Thanksgiving in American History
The origins of Thanksgiving, traditions and related information.
Religious Days
- For details relating to a range of religious celebrations and days from the major religions of the world, as well as related information, visit the separate Multifaith Calendar page on this site.
Saint Patrick’s Day
- St Patrick’s Day
The history, St Patrick, then use extra links to reach Irish associations, clubs and groups. - The History of St Patrick’s Day
Valentine’s Day
- Valentine’s Day
General history plus St Valentine information as well. - Valentine’s Day [2]
Background, the person it was named after. - Valentine’s Day [3]
- Valentine’s Day [4]
“World” Days
- International Women’s Day
Backed by the United Nations, a special day for at least half the world’s population. - World AIDS Day
Learn about the virus, support the cause and find events across Australia. - World Diabetes Day
Well worth noting in light of the dramatic increase of this disease both in Australia and overseas. - World Environment Day
Established by the UN and celebrated on June 5. - World Health Day
A day to celebrate health and help improve health around the world. - World NO Tobacco Day
Find out about the day, but if you smoke, find out how to Quit. - World Refugee Day
‘On World Refugee Day, let’s not forget that some day in the future any one of us could be knocking at a stranger’s door hoping to find a safe and friendly shelter’. Celebrated on June 20 each year.