2 April 2026
School Holidays 2026: A Parents' Planning Guide by State
School holiday dates for 2026 across all Australian states. When do schools go back, how long is each break, and how to plan childcare and annual leave around the school calendar.
School holidays create one of the most predictable — and most stressful — planning challenges for Australian parents. You know roughly when they're coming, but the exact dates vary by state, shift slightly each year, and almost never align perfectly with your leave balance.
This guide covers the 2026 school holiday dates for every state, which break is the longest, and how to think about aligning your annual leave.
How the Australian school year is structured
Most Australian states run a four-term school year with breaks in between:
- Term 1: Late January to late March/early April
- Term 2: Late April to late June
- Term 3: Mid-July to late September
- Term 4: Mid-October to mid-December
Between each term there's a 2-week holiday break, except the summer break between Term 4 and the following year's Term 1, which runs for 6–8 weeks.
2026 school holiday dates by state
New South Wales
- Autumn break: 7 April – 17 April 2026
- Winter break: 6 July – 17 July 2026
- Spring break: 28 September – 9 October 2026
- Summer break: From 18 December 2026
Victoria
- Autumn break: 3 April – 19 April 2026
- Winter break: 27 June – 12 July 2026
- Spring break: 19 September – 4 October 2026
- Summer break: From 19 December 2026
Queensland
- Autumn break: 3 April – 19 April 2026
- Winter break: 27 June – 12 July 2026
- Spring break: 19 September – 5 October 2026
- Summer break: From 12 December 2026
South Australia
- Autumn break: 11 April – 26 April 2026
- Winter break: 4 July – 19 July 2026
- Spring break: 26 September – 11 October 2026
- Summer break: From 12 December 2026
Western Australia
- Autumn break: 3 April – 19 April 2026
- Winter break: 4 July – 19 July 2026
- Spring break: 26 September – 11 October 2026
- Summer break: From 18 December 2026
Tasmania
- Autumn break: 18 April – 3 May 2026
- Winter break: 11 July – 26 July 2026
- Spring break: 3 October – 18 October 2026
- Summer break: From 19 December 2026
Northern Territory
- Autumn break: 3 April – 12 April 2026
- Winter break: 20 June – 12 July 2026
- Spring break: 19 September – 4 October 2026
- Summer break: From 12 December 2026
ACT
- Autumn break: 3 April – 20 April 2026
- Winter break: 4 July – 20 July 2026
- Spring break: 26 September – 12 October 2026
- Summer break: From 19 December 2026
For the full school term dates in your state, including exact dates schools go back, see the School Term Dates page.
Which break is the longest?
The winter break is the second-longest and the most underrated. At roughly 2 weeks, it's long enough to warrant a family holiday but short enough that childcare is often manageable with a combination of leave, grandparent help, and school holiday programs.
Queensland and the NT have the earliest summer break start — schools typically break up in early to mid-December, while NSW, VIC, and WA go through to mid-to-late December. If you're planning an interstate trip during school holidays, this staggered start matters: Queensland and NT families start travelling earlier, which affects accommodation availability and pricing.
Aligning leave with school holidays
The core challenge for working parents is that 2-week school holiday breaks are longer than the standard leave most people want to use in one go. A few approaches that work:
- Split the break. One parent takes the first week, the other takes the second. You only need one week of leave each, and the kids are covered the whole time.
- Use school holiday programs. Most councils, YMCAs, and childcare centres run vacation care during every break. Book early — spots in popular programs fill up within days of registration opening.
- Target the autumn break for travel. It aligns with Easter in most states, so you're likely already taking some leave. The overlap means your leave days work harder.
The Leave Planner lets you model different leave configurations to find the approach that stretches your annual leave furthest across the school holiday calendar.