At a glance
- Rest of 2026
- Christmas Eve (Thursday 24 December, 7pm to midnight only), Christmas Day (Friday 25 December), Proclamation Day holiday (Saturday 26 December), an additional holiday on Monday 28 December, and New Year’s Eve (Thursday 31 December, 7pm to midnight only)
- Metro fares
- Public holidays are off-peak all day: $2.70 on a regular metroCARD, Tap and Pay or Buy & Go Singletrip (as of November 2026)
- City parking
- On a locally recognised public holiday, time-limited on-street bays signposted MON to FRI are free and have no time limit in Adelaide and North Adelaide
- Still enforced
- Yellow edge lines, No Stopping and No Parking zones, loading, bus, taxi and permit zones, and any sign marked At All Times
- Who it’s for
- Anyone planning to travel or park in Adelaide around the 2026 Christmas and New Year break or a 2027 holiday
- What to do now
- Check the date in the tables below, plan trips for the off-peak fare, and read the parking signs before you leave the car
- Last checked
- Saturday 7 November 2026 (ACDT), against the SafeWork SA, Adelaide Metro and City of Adelaide pages
- Not yet confirmed
- Adelaide Metro’s Christmas and New Year timetables, and whether the off-peak fare and the free on-street bays apply during the Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve 7pm to midnight part-day holidays
South Australia’s remaining public holidays for 2026 are Christmas Day on Friday 25 December, the Proclamation Day holiday on Saturday 26 December and an additional holiday on Monday 28 December, plus part-day holidays on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve from 7pm to midnight. On a public holiday, Adelaide Metro fares are off-peak all day, and the City of Adelaide lets you use time-limited on-street bays signposted Monday to Friday for free. Adelaide is on daylight saving in this period (UTC+10:30), and times below are local Adelaide time.
This guide is from SafeWork SA’s public holidays page, the Adelaide Metro fares page and the City of Adelaide’s Parking in the city page.
What are South Australia’s public holidays for the rest of 2026?
SafeWork SA lists these dates. Public and bank holidays in South Australia are set by the Public Holidays Act 2023, which began on 1 January 2024 and replaced the Holidays Act 1910.
| Date | Holiday |
|---|---|
| Thursday 24 December 2026 | Christmas Eve, 7pm to midnight |
| Friday 25 December 2026 | Christmas Day |
| Saturday 26 December 2026 | Proclamation Day holiday |
| Monday 28 December 2026 | Additional public holiday for Proclamation Day |
| Thursday 31 December 2026 | New Year’s Eve, 7pm to midnight |
SafeWork SA also lists the school term 4 holidays as Saturday 12 December 2026 to Tuesday 27 January 2027. It notes that school holiday dates are given for reference only and are not under its jurisdiction.
What are the 2027 public holidays?
| Date | Holiday |
|---|---|
| Friday 1 January 2027 | New Year’s Day |
| Tuesday 26 January 2027 | Australia Day |
| Monday 8 March 2027 | Adelaide Cup Day |
| Friday 26 March 2027 | Good Friday |
| Saturday 27 March 2027 | Easter Saturday |
| Sunday 28 March 2027 | Easter Sunday |
| Monday 29 March 2027 | Easter Monday |
| Sunday 25 April 2027 | ANZAC Day |
| Monday 14 June 2027 | King’s Birthday |
| Monday 4 October 2027 | Labour Day |
| Friday 24 December 2027 | Christmas Eve, 7pm to midnight |
| Saturday 25 December 2027 | Christmas Day |
| Sunday 26 December 2027 | Proclamation Day holiday and Boxing Day |
| Monday 27 December 2027 | Additional public holiday for Christmas Day |
| Tuesday 28 December 2027 | Additional public holiday for Proclamation Day |
| Friday 31 December 2027 | New Year’s Eve, 7pm to midnight |
SafeWork SA’s 2027 school holiday dates are Saturday 10 to Sunday 25 April, Saturday 3 to Sunday 18 July, Saturday 25 September to Sunday 10 October, and Saturday 11 December 2027 to Sunday 30 January 2028.
When does an extra day off apply?
SafeWork SA sets out these rules, which explain the extra days in the tables:
| Holiday | Rule |
|---|---|
| Christmas Day and New Year’s Day | When 25 December or 1 January falls on a Saturday or Sunday, that day and the following Monday are public holidays |
| Proclamation Day holiday (26 December) | South Australia’s Proclamation Day is 28 December, but the holiday is observed on 26 December. When 26 December is a Saturday, that day and the following Monday are public holidays. When it is a Sunday or Monday, that day and the following Tuesday are public holidays |
| Australia Day | When 26 January falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the following Monday is the public holiday instead |
| ANZAC Day | A public holiday whatever day it falls on, with no substitute or additional day when 25 April is a Saturday or Sunday |
| Easter | Since 1 January 2024 Easter Sunday is a public holiday, so all four days of Easter are public holidays |
Are the banks and shops open?
SafeWork SA says all public holidays and Sundays are bank holidays, and all authorised deposit-taking institutions must be closed on them. On shop trading, it says Easter Saturday is a public holiday but is a normal day of Saturday trading in the Greater Adelaide Shopping District. Non-exempt shops in that district can trade from 9:00am to 5:00pm on the additional public holiday when New Year’s Day, Christmas Day or the Proclamation Day holiday falls on a Saturday or Sunday, or on a Monday in the case of Proclamation Day. The Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve part-day holidays do not change the prescribed trading hours for the day they fall on.
What do the part-day holidays mean?
SafeWork SA says a person who works between 7pm and midnight on Christmas Eve or New Year’s Eve is entitled to the public holiday rates under the relevant award or enterprise agreement. That applies even when those days fall on a Saturday or Sunday. These two days are holidays for the evening only.
What does a bus, train or tram cost on a public holiday?
Adelaide Metro lists off-peak travel as 9:01am to 2:59pm Monday to Friday, 4:00am to midnight on Sundays, and all day on public holidays. Fares are the same on buses, trains and trams, and each fare allows two hours of travel for any distance. The fares below came into effect on Thursday 1 October 2026, when fares rose by about 3.3 per cent, in line with the consumer price index.
| Fare | Peak | Off-peak (all day on a public holiday) |
|---|---|---|
| Regular metroCARD (rechargeable) | $4.75 | $2.70 |
| Tap and Pay | $4.75 | $2.70 |
| Buy & Go Singletrip | $4.75 | $2.70 |
| Singletrip (paper ticket) | $6.80 | $4.50 |
| Concession metroCARD | $2.35 | $1.35 |
| Student metroCARD | $1.65 | $1.35 |
A Daytrip pass is $12.90 and a 3-Day Visitor Pass is $29.90, both with unlimited travel on buses, trains and trams. Seniors Card holders still travel free. Buses are cashless, so you cannot buy a ticket on board; use a metroCARD, Tap and Pay with a Visa, Mastercard or American Express card or device, or the Buy & Go app. For more, see our guide to Adelaide Metro fares. Adelaide Metro’s information line is 1300 311 108, open from 7:00am to 8:00pm daily.
Is on-street parking free in the city on a public holiday?
The City of Adelaide says that on locally recognised public holidays in the city and North Adelaide you can use time-limited on-street parking bays, paid or unpaid, that are signposted MON to FRI, free of charge and without a time limit. It adds that you still need to read and understand the signs before leaving your vehicle. Time-limited bays signposted for other days are not covered by that statement on the page.
Other controls still apply on public holidays: continuous yellow edge lines, stopping within 10 metres of the nearest point of an intersecting road, No Stopping Zones, No Parking Zones, Loading Zones, Bus Zones, Taxi Zones, Permit Zones, and any sign that indicates At All Times.
How do I pay for parking, and what about the UPark car parks?
On-street parking in the City of Adelaide is cashless. The ticket machines no longer accept coins and take Visa or Mastercard, by card or digital wallet, and debit cards are accepted. Transaction fees are not passed on. You can also pay by scanning the QR code on the ticket machine screen with the UPark app. If you have no credit or debit card, the City suggests a prepaid card such as an Australia Post Everyday Mastercard.
The City owns and operates the UPark off-street car parks, with nine locations and about 6,000 spaces. Some are open 24 hours and others offer Early Bird discounts. The City’s page does not list holiday rates for the UPark car parks, so check the UPark website for the car park you plan to use. See also our guide to Adelaide council car parks and their rates.
What if I get a parking expiation notice?
The City says a parking expiation notice can be handed to you, secured under your windscreen wiper, or sent in the mail. If you did not get a receipt when you parked, you can request one through the City’s self-serve portal or its online form for on-street parking receipts. For UPark car parks, request a receipt from the UPark website.
What has not been confirmed?
As of 7 November 2026, this guide does not include Adelaide Metro’s Christmas and New Year timetables. The Adelaide Metro and City of Adelaide pages also do not say whether the all-day off-peak fare and the free on-street bays apply during the 7pm to midnight part-day holidays on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve. We will update this guide when those are published.
Sources
- SafeWork SA — Public holidays (2026 and 2027 dates, extra-day rules, bank holidays, shop trading, part-day holidays)
- Adelaide Metro — Fares (fares, peak and off-peak times, payment, cashless buses)
- Adelaide Metro — Public transport fares are changing this October (1 October 2026 increase, Seniors Card, information line)
- City of Adelaide — Parking in the city (public holiday parking, cashless payment, UPark, expiation notices)
Featured image: Rundle Mall in Adelaide, August 2026 (photo: Yu Chu Chin / CC BY-SA 4.0) (text added)
OZ Local Updates is an independent local guide and is not affiliated with SafeWork SA, Adelaide Metro, the City of Adelaide or UPark. Dates and rules can change; check the official pages before you travel.