If there’s one thing we love almost as much as a long weekend, it’s squeezing every last drop out of our annual leave. And good news, Aotearoa’s public holidays are stacked in a way that lets you work smarter, not harder.

The big brain move is spotting holidays that fall on Mondays and Fridays. Think Waitangi Day (Feb 6), Matariki (July 10), Labour Day (Oct 26), and King’s Birthday (June 1). These already hand you a three day weekend, so adding just one or two days of leave can turn that into a cheeky mini break without rinsing your balance.

Easter is the undefeated champ. You’ve got Good Friday (April 3) and Easter Monday (April 6) locked in, so by taking just three days off before and after these dates, you’re suddenly staring down a 10 day holiday. That’s overseas trip energy, on domestic leave.

Christmas and New Year are another golden window. With Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Day, and 2 January all public holidays, a small handful of leave days can stretch into two full weeks off. Perfect for roadies, beach missions, or doing absolutely nothing and calling it “rest”.

The real trick is planning early. Chuck those leave requests in before your whole team clocks on and the calendar fills up. Employers usually rate the organisation, and you get first dibs on the primo dates.

Moral of the story, a little planning goes a long way. Your future self, lying horizontal on a beach on minimal leave, will be forever grateful.