Time Off and Time to Party
Everyone likes to take time off and relax a bit, and the Czechs have many opportunities around the year to do so.
In this section of the website, you can find information about holidays and occasions in the Czech Republic.
Public Holidays on the Czech Calendar
Not all of the events I write about in this section will be public holidays, and some will be be quite regional in nature.
Here is a list of public holidays observed in the Czech Republic:
January 1
January 1 is observed as both New Year’s Day and As Restoration Day, the latter marking the peaceful split of Czechoslovakia in 1992.
Easter
The exact dates of Easter holiday vary slightly from year to year. The public holidays of Easter are Good Friday and Easter Monday.
May 1
This is the traditional day of workers and equivalent to Labour Day. While it was a very big deal during Socialism, it’s simply a day off work for most people these days. In a Czech context, it’s seen as a holiday for lovers and a rite of Spring where sweethearts kiss under a tree, with cherry trees being prefered though apple and birch trees are also seen as acceptable substitutes by some.
May 8
Marking the end of the Second World War and the liberation of the country by Allied forces, the Czech Republic shares this state holiday with many other European nations. Generally it is a day of wreath laying ceremonies in many places around the country and the main military parade in Prague.
July 5
St. Cyril and Methodius Day commemorates Cyril and Methodius arriving in the Moravian regions in 863, bringing Christianity, creation of the first Slavic alphabet and the translation of the Bible and other holy literature into the old Slavonic language.
Many religious people take the occasion to make a pilgrimage to the basilica in the village of Velehrad, in the south east of the coutry. Velehrad was where Cyril and Methodius did their work, and is the most important point of pilgrimage in the Czech Republic.
July 6
Jan Hus Day commemorates the life and death of Jan Hus (c.1372 – 1415), a Catholic priest who was branded a heretic and burned at the stake for promoting reforms in the Church that included a reduction in the oppulence in which bishops and higher members of the clergy lived as well as the ability to minister to his congregation in their own language rather than Latin.
September 28
This holiday goes by two names: Statehood Day and St. Wenceslaus Day. It serves to honour St. Wenceslaus, the nation’s patron saint, and his importance in laying the groundwork for the Czech State.
October 28This is the Czech version of Independance Day. It Commemorates of the founding of Czechoslovakia in 1918.
November 17
This is Freedom and Democracy Day.
This day commemorates two protests against tyranny by Czech students. The original protest against German occupation occurred on November 17 of 1939 in the wake of the killing of a Czech student by German troops for his act of protest against the occupation. Over 1,000 of the students who participated in that protest were sent to concentration camps and the Germans shut down Czech higher education institutions for three years.
In 1989, fifty years to the day of the 1939 protest, Czech students rallied against tyranny once again—this time against the Socialist regime—and started the Velvet Revolution which led to the fall of the country’s Socialist regime.
Christmas
Public holiday dates for Christmas in the Czech Republic are December 24, 25, and 26.
December 31
New Year’s Eve.
Additional Notes on Public Holidays in the Czech Republic
If you are going to the Czech Republic to live and work, be prepared that when a public holiday falls on a weekend, there will not be an adjoining workday given “in lieu” in the Czech workplace.
If you are visiting the Czech Republic during a public holiday, you should get any major shopping done before the holiday. According to legislation, shops larger than 200 square metres must be closed on the following days:
New Year’s Day
Easter Monday
May 8
September 28
October 28
December 24 (Stores must be closed from noon)
December 25 and 26
Corner stores and grocery stores under 200 square metres, pharmacies, gas/petrol stations, as well as shops in train stations, airports and hospitals are not subject to the legislation and may remain open.
Beyond Prague 