Holidays

Holidays in Austria

In Austria, church holidays do not differ significantly from those in Germany. However, both countries have regional holidays in addition to national ones. One example is the day of St. Rupert of Salzburg, to whom, as the patron saint of the region, a separate day of remembrance is dedicated on September 24.

So before you go on holiday, it’s best to find out about regional holidays first and foremost.

Overview

New Year’s Day – January 1

Three Kings Day – on January 6

Karif Friday – two days before Easter Sunday

Easter Sunday – after the first full moon in spring

Easter Monday – one day after Easter Sunday

State holiday – on May 1

Ascension Day – 39 days after Easter Sunday

Pentecost Sunday – 49 days after Easter Sunday

Pentecost Monday – 50 days after Easter Sunday

Front Corpus Christi – 60 days after Easter Sunday

Ascension of Mary – on August 15

National Day – on October 26

All Saints’ Day – on November 1

Marian Conception – on December 8

Christmas Eve – on December 24

Christmas Day (Christmas Day) – on December 25

St. Stephen’s Day (2nd Christmas Day) – on December 26

New Year’s Eve – on December 31

Worth knowing about selected holidays

State holiday

As early as April 1919, May 1 was designated a state holiday and thus a day of rest and celebration in the First Republic. The tradition, introduced by the Social Democrats, was interrupted in 1933 by Federal Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuß, but revived already in 1934 on the occasion of the proclamation of the Austrofascist May Constitution as “Memorial Day of the Proclamation of the Constitution” under completely different auspices.

With the German annexation of Austria in 1938, the National Socialists finally transformed the commemoration day into the “Day of National Labor”. It was not until four years after the end of the war, on 20 August 1949, that 1 May was officially reinstated as a national holiday.

National Holiday

Austria’s first national holiday was 12 November 1919 – the one-year anniversary of the proclamation of the Republic after the end of the First World War. After celebrating the proclamation of the Constitution on May 1 as a national holiday in 1934, Austria lacked a proper national holiday after the end of World War II. This was only reintroduced with the end of the occupation, i.e. the withdrawal of the Allies.

On the first day of Austria’s freedom from occupation, 26 October 1955, a law on “perpetual neutrality” was passed by the Austrian National Council. To commemorate independence, 25 October was designated “Flag Day”. A year later it was moved to 26 October.

In 1965, Parliament and the federal government finally decided to make October 26 a legal national holiday. Rallies and events are held annually to mark the occasion, and museums often offer special programs or have reduced admission prices.