NT Public Holidays

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 2023

The holiday list below shows both statewide and regional Northern Territory public holidays.

Holiday TitleDateHoliday TypeArea
New Year’s DaySunday, 1 January 2023PublicNT Wide
New Year’s Day Additional DayMonday, 2 January 2023PublicNT Wide
Australia DayThursday, 26 January 2023PublicNT Wide
Good FridayFriday, 7 April 2023PublicNT Wide
Day following Good FridaySaturday, 8 April 2023PublicNT Wide
Easter MondayMonday, 10 April 2023PublicNT Wide
Anzac DayTuesday, 25 April 2023PublicNT Wide
May DayMonday, 1 May 2023PublicNT Wide
King’s BirthdayMonday, 12 June 2023PublicNT Wide
Alice Springs Show DayFriday, 7 July 2023RegionalAlice Springs
Tennant Creek Show DayFriday, 14 July 2023RegionalTennant Creek
Katherine Show DayFriday, 21 July 2023RegionalKatherine
Darwin Show DayFriday, 28 July 2023RegionalDarwin
Borroloola Show DayFriday, 18 August 2023RegionalBorroloola
Picnic DayMonday, 7 August 2023PublicNT Wide
Christmas Eve*Sunday, 24 December 2023PublicNT Wide
Christmas DayMonday, 25 December 2023PublicNT Wide
Boxing DayTuesday, 26 December 2023PublicNT Wide
New Year’s Eve (Part Day)Sunday, 31 December 2023PublicNT Wide

Notes:

*In the Northern Territory, Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve are part-day public holidays (7 pm til midnight).

The Queen’s Birthday public holiday has been replaced by the King’s Birthday public holiday.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

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.