Time is flying by and we’re fast approaching 2025, so it’s important to know which holidays there are. Why? Well, only by planning ahead will you be able to turn the usual 22 working days of vacation into more days of rest. So join us in this analysis of the 2025 calendar.
Although it doesn’t always happen, the truth is that next year we’ll have the opportunity to enjoy more days off, thanks to public holidays, bridges and/or long weekends. To give you an idea, of the 13 national holidays, ten fall on a weekday. And if you add the Porto holiday, on June 24th, then that’s another chance to relax.
In this context, at Porto Secreto we’ve been mapping out the best strategy so that you can plan your next vacations, vacations and long weekends, benefiting from more days to rest and, of course, travel. Let’s go?
Making the most of the 2025 calendar
With good organization, believe me, you’ll be able to enjoy many getaways in 2025, whether in Portugal or abroad. Whether you’re into luxury travel or more simple trips in the middle of nature, there’s one thing we all have in common: we need to ‘switch off’.
So we’ve created this list of tips to make the most of the 2025 calendar and its holidays. With the exception of Easter, the Implantation of the Republic and All Saints’ Day, which fall on a weekend, all the others take place during the week.
Turn your vacation into more days off
In our vacation planning for next year, it’s important to note that when we mention ‘days off’, we always count weekend days. But when we talk about vacations, we mean the usual 22 days that every worker is entitled to according to the law in force.
January
The first day of the year falls on a Wednesday. So, to enjoy five days off, you only need to ‘use up’ two days of vacation:
- Thursday, January 2nd
- Friday, January 3rd
April & May
This is probably one of the most interesting times of the year to optimize your available vacation days.
April 25th falls on a Friday, making it a golden opportunity. In other words, you can take eight days off between April 21 and May 2, taking advantage of 16 days off (from the Good Friday holiday on April 18 to Sunday, May 4).
June
June is synonymous with the arrival of one of the most eagerly awaited seasons of the year: summer. But even better is the celebration of São João, Porto’s biggest festival.
In this context, you can divide your moments of rest as follows:
- You can take advantage of the holidays on June 10 (Tuesday, Portugal Day) and June 19 (Thursday, Corpus Christi);
- Or wait for Porto’s municipal holiday on June 24 (St. John’s Day), which falls on a Tuesday, to mark another long weekend.
August
In July there are no holidays for anyone, but August brings us another option, namely the 15th (Assumption of Our Lady), which falls on a Friday.
In this scenario, our recommendation is that you take the opportunity to add another day by taking the Thursday before or the Monday after, turning the three days into four days off.
December
The 2025 calendar promises to end in the best possible way with the arrival of the December holidays:
- Day 1, Restoration of Independence
- Day 8, Immaculate Conception
- The 25th, Christmas
At this time of year you can also enjoy two distinct phases:
- The very first week you can take four days off (from December 2 to 5), enjoying nine days off (from November 29 to December 7)
- In the last week, you can also take four days off (December 22, 23, 24 and 26), guaranteeing the same nine days off, from December 20 to 28.
National holidays for 2025
After our suggestions, here’s the full list of national holidays for 2025:
- New Year’s Day: January 1, Wednesday
- Good Friday: April 18, Friday
- Easter Sunday: April 20, Sunday
- Freedom Day: April 25, Friday
- Labor Day: May 1, Thursday
- Portugal Day: June 10, Tuesday
- Corpus Christi: June 19, Thursday
- Assumption of Our Lady: August 15, Friday
- Implantation of the Republic: October 5, Sunday
- All Saints’ Day: November 1st, Saturday
- Restoration of Independence: December 1, Monday
- Immaculate Conception Day: December 8, Monday
- Christmas: December 25, Thursday