How to Turn Your Annual Leave Into Twice the Time Off in 2027

Easter falls early in 2027: Good Friday is 26 March and Easter Monday is 29 March, giving everyone a four-day long weekend without booking any leave at all (most states also observe Easter Saturday on 27 March as a public holiday — Western Australia and Tasmania are the exceptions). To turn it into something longer, book the four weekdays that follow — Tuesday 30 March through Friday 2 April — for ten days off in total, running from Friday 26 March through to Sunday 4 April. That's plenty of time for a longer trip: a road trip through the Hunter or Barossa, a Bali beach break, or a longer haul further afield. 

Anzac Day falls on Sunday 25 April 2027. In New South Wales, the ACT, Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia, a substitute public holiday is observed on Monday 26 April, giving those states a three-day weekend from Saturday 24 to Monday 26 April without needing any leave. Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania don't get a Monday substitute, so Anzac Day there is a Sunday only. In the substitute-day states, book Tuesday 27 through Friday 30 April — four days of leave — for nine days off in total, from Saturday 24 April through to Sunday 2 May.

The King's Birthday public holiday falls on Monday 14 June 2027 in New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania, the ACT and the Northern Territory. Book the four days that follow — Tuesday 15 through Friday 18 June — for nine days off, running Saturday 12 June to Sunday 20 June. It's a great window for a cosy winter escape to the Barossa, Hunter Valley, or a snow trip to Thredbo.

💡Expert tip: Western Australia observes its equivalent public holiday on Monday 27 September 2027, and Queensland on Monday 4 October 2027 — apply the same four-day leave trick to either of those dates instead. 

Christmas Day falls on a Saturday in 2027 (25 December), with the substitute public holiday observed on Monday 27 December, and Boxing Day falls on Sunday 26 December, with its substitute on Tuesday 28 December — already a four-day break without touching your leave balance. Book the three working days that follow, Wednesday 29 through Friday 31 December, and you'll have a nine-day break running Saturday 25 December through to Sunday 2 January, for just three days of leave. It's the same trick that got you through the last stretch of the year — well worth locking in early, since this is the most popular fortnight of the year to book off. 

Booking these dates in early is the real trick — leave calendars and flight prices both get less forgiving the closer you get to each of these windows. Chat with a Flight Centre Travel Expert to match a destination to whichever window suits you best, or browse flightcentre.com.au/deals for what's currently on offer.