Public Holiday information for Northern Territory (NT) and Darwin residents and visitors.
The Northern Territory has a combination of statewide public holidays and regional public holidays for local shows in some areas. The areas of the NT that have regional public holidays are Alice Springs, Tennant Creek, Katherine, Darwin and Borroloola.
NT Public Holidays 2025
The holiday list below shows both statewide and regional Northern Territory public holidays.
Notes:
*In the Northern Territory, Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve are part-day public holidays (7 pm til midnight).
In 2025, Australia Day falls on Sunday, 26 January. As a result the Australia Day public holiday is moved to Monday, 27 January.
The Queen’s Birthday public holiday has been replaced by the King’s Birthday public holiday.
Information presented is from NT Government sources.
NT Public Holiday Information
There are a total of seven national public holidays that are observed by every state within Australia. In addition, each state sets their own public holiday dates via their own state or local government.
The national public holidays that are observed throughout all of Australia are:
- New Year’s Day
- Australia Day
- Anzac Day
- Good Friday
- Easter Monday
- Christmas Day
- Boxing Day
The public holidays that are exclusive to the Northern Territory are:
- May Day
- King’s Birthday
- Picnic Day
- Some local show holidays observed within certain regions
Northern Territory Regional Public Holidays
In the Northern Territory there are five regions that have their own unique public holidays. Those regions are:
- Alice Springs
- Tennant Creek
- Katherine
- Darwin
- Borroloola
View a map of the Northern Territory public holiday regions (source: https://nt.gov.au/nt-public-holidays/show-day-regions)
What is May Day in the NT?
May Day is the Northern Territory’s equivalent to Labour Day throughout the rest of Australia (exluding Tasmania where it’s referred to as Eight Hours Day).
May Day commemorates the granting of the eight-hour working day for Australians and recognises worker’s contributions towards the Australian economy.
What is Picnic Day in the NT?
Picnic Day’s meaning and origins are a little sketchy. There are a variety of different theories available on the internet as to what Picnic Day means.
The basic premise of Picnic Day is that it is meant as a day for workers to have a day off and spend it celebrating with a picnic. Picnic Day events date back as far as the late 1800s. In the past, railway employees would hold an annual Union Picnic Day or Trade Picnic Day at Adelaide River.
In more recent times, the Harts Range Races in Central Australia have become a significant Picnic Day event, with some theories stating that the Picnic Day holiday began with the first race meeting at Harts Range Races in 1947, but history shows that Picnic Days were observed much earlier than this.