There are 13 public (bank) holidays celebrated every year in the Czech Republic. Most of the Czech public holidays have a fixed date. The exceptions are the Easter holidays, including Good Friday and Easter Monday. Only 3 public holidays 2019 fall on the weekend.
The bad news for relocated employees is that the holidays don’t slide. Which means that when a holiday falls on Saturday or Sunday, it is not moved to the next Monday.
Another unpleasant surprise for all expats, digital nomads, Erasmus students or relocated employees comes when they find out their favorite shop is closed on a public holiday. So, don’t forget to stock up on food before. It doesn’t apply to all shops and holidays, though, only to shops larger than 200 square metres.
You can do shopping in small shops, petrol stations, pharmacies or in the shops located in airports, railway stations or hospitals.
And now the good news. Unlike the shops, other places, such as castles, churches, museums, galleries, community centres or theatres, are open during holidays and often provide a rich program. Restaurants offer specials, so, make sure you don’t miss them.
Here’s more information about each Czech holiday in 2019.
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New Year's Day
- 1 January (Tuesday)
- Shops larger than 200 square metres are closed.
January 1 is the first day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. For most Czechs 1 January is a day of rest after the New Year’s Eve (Silvestr) celebrations, and a family day. Families gather around lunch that often includes lentil soup.
Lentils represent money so eating this soup should bring you wealth. On the contrary, you shouldn’t eat anything with feathers because your good luck might fly away.
Fireworks are common on New Year’s Eve but some towns in the Czech Republic hold New Year’s Day fireworks.
On January 1 the Czech people also commemorate the split of Czechoslovakia into the Czech Republic and Slovakia in 1993.
Good Friday
- April 19 (Friday)
- All shops are open.
The date of the holiday changes every year. Easter falls on the Sunday after the first spring full moon.
Good Friday was renewed as a public holiday in 2016. It’s the day that commemorates Christ’s crucifixion and therefore an important day for Christians who gather for worship.
As the majority of the Czech population is secular, many people enjoy the prolonged weekend that consists of 4 days and set out of town for skiing, cycling or hiking activities. Towns, museums, community centres and other institutions often run Easter markets, workshops or exhibitions of traditional Easter products, decorations and crafts.
Despite the Christian tradition, the origin of Easter goes back to pagan times and is surrounded with magic and folk sayings. One of them is that earth opens and reveals its treasures on Good Friday.
Easter Monday
- April 22 (Monday)
- Shops larger than 200 square metres are closed.
The date of the holiday changes every year. Easter falls on the Sunday after the first spring full moon.
Though the Christian Easter culminates on Easter Day which is Sunday, Czech folk traditions are connected with Easter Monday. Especially in the country, men go from house to house with their whips called “pomlazka” braided out of pussy-willow twigs.
They spank women with the whips while saying a carol. In eastern regions they also throw cold water on them. Women provide decorated hard-boiled eggs, chocolates and sweets for the boys and a shot of spirit (often Slivovice) for the men.
The purpose of the spanking is to keep the women healthy and young and prevent them from “drying out”.
Labour Day (May Day)
- May 1 (Wednesday)
- All shops are open.
The Czech Republic celebrates Labour Day along with other countries worldwide. The history of this holiday goes back to 1890. Labour Day was massively promoted during the communist era and now many people are ambivalent about it. Some political parties choose this day for their propagation and demonstrations are also common.
May 1 was mentioned in a famous love poem ‘May’ written by K. H. Mácha and therefore is a day of love for many Czechs. According to an old tradition, couples should kiss under a cherry tree in blossom so that women will stay healthy and beautiful.
Though it’s not a public holiday, April 30 is also worth mentioning. People light fires and burn witches made of rugs, as a symbol of the ending of winter, on this evening.
Liberation from Fascism
- 8 May - (Wednesday)
- Shops larger than 200 square metres are closed.
Liberation or Victory Day is celebrated across Europe around this date. The day signifies the victory of the Allied forces and the end of World War II in 1945. The Czech Republic was a part of the Fascist Third Reich during the World War II and May 8 commemorates its liberation by the Russian and US armies in 1945.
It is a day of parades and state celebrations. The president and the prime minister join parades and lay wreaths to the victims of the War at the National Memorial on Vitkov Hill.
Cyril and Methodius Day
- July 5 (Friday)
- All shops are open.
Cyril and Methodius Day is the commemoration of St. Cyril (Constantine) and St. Metodej (Methodius). They were church teachers and came to Great Moravia from Greek Salonika in 863. Cyril and Methodius propagated the Christian faith and created a new Glagolitic script. They also enforced Old Slavonic as the official language.
Most Czechs don’t actively celebrate July 5 and 6 and take these two days as an opportunity to get a full week’s summer holiday. Especially when the holidays fall on the days preceding or following the weekend, towns clear out in a similar way to the Christmas season.
School summer holiday starts at the beginning of July and families with children head for Croatia or other seaside countries around this time.
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Jan Hus Day
- July 6 (Saturday)
- All shops are open.
Jan Hus was a priest, philosopher and religious reformer who lived in 14th century. He criticised the moral decline of society and disagreed with several Roman Catholic church doctrines.
July 6 is the commemoration of his burning at the stake at the Council of Constance on 6 July 1415. Jan Hus is one of the most significant Czech personalities.
Czech Statehood Day
- September 28 (Saturday)
- Shops larger than 200 square metres are closed.
Bohemian Duke St. Wenceslas was murdered by his brother on 28 September 935. St. Wenceslas was declared a patron of the Czech state and the day of his death was pronounced a day of Czech statehood.
So called ‘St. Wenceslas times’ around this date, with sunny Indian summer weather are ideal for last outdoor activities before the autumn rains come. Many towns hold St. Wenceslas markets and it is also the time of the grape harvest and wine celebrations.
First Christmas Day
- December 25 (Wednesday)
- Shops larger than 200 square metres are closed.
25 December is the day of Jesus’s birth and a day of rest, celebration and feasting. Czechs usually visit their wider family and give each other presents. Many people have goose or duck with cabbage and dumplings or “svickova” (sirloin beef in cream sauce) with dumplings for lunch.
Second Christmas Day
- December 26 (Thursday)
- Shops larger than 200 square metres are closed.
26 December is also known as St Stephen’s Day who was the protomartyr of Christianity. In the past, servants caroled and were often released from service on this day. Nowadays, it is a day of visits similar to the First Christmas Day.
