Dates to remember in Poland: public holidays, observances & traditions, shopping Sundays in Poland in 2024

The list of public/bank holidays in Poland in 2024

In 2024, there are the following public/bank holidays in Poland:

• Monday, January 1, 2024 – New Year
• Saturday, January 6, 2024 – Epiphany
• Sunday, March 31, 2024 – Easter
• Monday, April 1, 2024 – Easter Monday
• Wednesday, May 1, 2024 – Labor Day
• Friday, May 3, 2024 – Constitution Day
• Sunday, May 19, 2024 – Whit Sunday / Pentecost / Zielone Świątki (always on Sunday)
• Thursday, May 30, 2024 – Corpus Christi
• Thursday, August 15, 2024 – Army Day and the Assumption of Mary
• Friday, November 1, 2024 – All Saints Day
• Monday, November 11, 2024 – Independence Day
• Wednesday, December 25, 2024 – Christmas
• Thursday, December 26, 2024 – Christmas

Shopping Sundays in Poland in 2024

In 2024, there will be 7 shopping Sundays in Poland: January 28, March 24, April 28, June 30, August 25, December 15, and December 22.

Click here to read more about the Sunday trade ban in Poland and shopping Sundays in Poland in our post.

Holidays, observances, celebrations in Poland in 2024

New Year’s Day (Nowy Rok)
A public holiday in Poland – stores, malls, shopping centers are closed, only some smaller local convenience stores can be open (eg. Żabka). You can do basic shopping at gas stations.

Epiphany / The Three Wise Kings (Trzech Króli)   
A public holiday in Poland, stores are closed. Christian holiday commemorating the three wise kings’ visit to infant Jesus. In Warsaw and other big cities, there are street parades. There is a tradition in Poland to write with chalk brought from the church above the entrance of your home: K+M+B (or C+M+B). The letters have two meanings: they represent the initials of Caspar, Melchior, and Balthazar (Kacper, Melchior, Baltazar); it’s also the abbreviation of the Latin phrase Christus mansionem benedicat (May Christ bless this house).

Grandmother’s Day & Grandfather’s Day (Dzień Babci & Dzień Dziadka)
People visit or call their grandparents to honor them. In kindergartens, there are usually events for grandparents.

Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity, 32nd Grand Finale (Wielka Orkiestra Świątecznej Pomocy)
The biggest charity event in Poland. The 2024 winter fundraiser will be held to raise funds to purchase equipment for children’s and adults’ respiratory units (post-pandemic lungs). Many concerts, shows, and other events all over Poland. Volunteers (including many children) collect money on the streets giving away to all donors red stickers in the shape of a heart. The Foundation’s website in English.

Fat Thursday (Tłusty Czwartek)
The last Thursday before Lent starts (it’s similar to Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday celebrations), in Poland it’s a donut / pączek day. In the morning, you can notice long lines in front of bakeries and cafes all over Poland. People all day long eat pączki (donuts filled with fruit jam) or faworki (French dough pastry served with powdered sugar) at schools, at work, at home. There are contests for the best pastry stores in the city and some families have pączek eating competition – who will eat the most donuts on Fat Thursday.

Last day of the carnival, Śledzik (herring night), Ostatki (last days of carnival)
The last chance to party (typically with drinking and music) before the start of Lent (which doesn’t mean there are no parties during Lent in Poland, just not as many). The party/dinner is called in Polish Śledzik (little herring) – during old-fashioned Polish parties, it was a popular appetizer washed down with alcohol.

Valentine’s Day (Walentynki)
It’s a relatively new celebration in Poland (not observed in Poland during communism time before 1989), becoming more and more popular. All restaurants are usually full, you need to book your table in advance;) School kids are making Valentine’s Day cards and couples remember to make a nice surprise.

Ash Wednesday (Środa Popielcowa, Popielec)
The first day of Lent. People go to churches where priests put ashes (made from palm branches blessed on the previous year’s Palm Sunday) on people’s foreheads saying ‘Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return’ (‘Z prochu powstałeś i w proch się obrócisz’). It is a tradition among the Roman Catholics in Poland to avoid meat, alcohol, sweets, and snacks on that day.

Ash Wednesday (Środa Popielcowa, Popielec)
The first day of Lent. People go to churches where priests put ashes (made from palm branches blessed on the previous year’s Palm Sunday) on people’s foreheads saying ‘Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return’ (‘Z prochu powstałeś i w proch się obrócisz’). It is a tradition among the Roman Catholics in Poland to avoid meat, alcohol, sweets, and snacks on that day.

Women’s Day (Dzień Kobiet)
The tradition of Women’s Day is not as popular as during the communist time in Poland, but still, women usually get flowers or other gifts.

Men’s Day (Dzień Mężczyzny)
In Poland, Boy’s Day and Men’s Day are celebrated – Boy’s Day (September 30) is a much more popular holiday than Men’s Day.

St. Patrick’s Day (Dzień Świętego Patryka)
Poland also celebrates St. Patrick’s Day – people wear green, and there are parades, festivals, concerts.

Truant’s Day / Skip Day (Dzień Wagarowicza)
The first day of spring. The old Polish folk tradition of the first day of spring is to drown Marzanna (a straw figure of a woman symbolizing winter) in the nearest river (nowadays mostly in rural areas and by children at schools). For children, the first day of spring is Truant’s Day / Skip Day (Dzień Wagarowicza). Some students skip classes but usually, it’s just a special fun day at school – students dress up funnily, schools organize competitions and games, and there are no tests on this day. Click here to read more about the weather in Poland in spring.

Palm Sunday (Niedziela Palmowa)
It starts the Easter celebrations. There are processions around the church to commemorate the day Jesus entered Jerusalem. People bring „palms” (palmy wielkanocne) made of paper flowers, dried flowers, and twigs. Click here to learn more about Easter traditions in Poland.

Good Friday (Wielki Piątek)
Good Friday commemorates the passion and crucifixion of Jesus. In major cities in Poland, there are processions on the streets – people carrying a huge cross and contemplating the passion of Jesus. In Poland, for many people, it’s a day of fasting – no meat, no parties, no alcohol.

Holy Saturday (Wielka Sobota)
People bring to churches baskets (called in Polish święconka) filled with food to get a special blessing. Baskets usually include eggs as a symbol of rebirth (pisanki – boiled eggs painted in various colors and patterns), bread, salt, sausage, sometimes other food – chocolate, cake, horseradish, etc. Food from święconka basket is shared the next morning during festive Easter breakfast. Click here to learn more about Easter traditions in Poland.

Easter Day (Wielkanoc) 
A public/bank holiday in Poland. Easter Sunday commemorates the resurrection of Jesus. Many people in Poland start the day with 6 am morning mass (Rezurekcja). The key event of the day – a family breakfast that starts with eating Święconka, then żurek soup (also known as white barszcz), bigos, sausage with horseradish, mazurek cake. Public institutions, stores, malls, shopping centers are closed, only some smaller local convenience stores can be opened and stores at gas stations. Click here to learn more about Easter traditions in Poland.

Time change (zmiana czasu)
On Sunday, March 31 2024 at 02:00 am clocks go forward 1 hour to 03:00 am. The change to summertime in Poland takes place on the last Sunday of March. Poland switches back to regular time on the last Sunday of October. The European Union lawmakers wanted to end the twice-a-year (March and October) custom of time changes throughout the European Union, leaving member states the freedom to decide their standard time. But the coronavirus pandemic has put these plans on hold. Click here to learn more about the time change in Poland.

Easter Monday (Poniedziałek Wielkanocny), “Wet Monday” (Lany Poniedziałek)
A public/bank holiday in Poland. Śmigus dyngus – an old tradition in Poland in which people use buckets (kids usually play with water guns) to soak each other with water. It’s safe to stay home on Wet Monday and avoid street water fights;) Another Easter Monday tradition is to beat legs with willow branches or Palms (the ones used for Palm Sunday). Public institutions, stores, malls, shopping centers are closed, only some smaller local convenience stores can be opened and stores at gas stations. Click here to learn more about Easter traditions in Poland.

April Fools’ Day (Prima Aprilis)
A day of pranks and jokes. Don’t trust anyone;) Including Polish media which also participates in the celebrations with lots of fabricated stories.

Anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising (1943) and the Daffodils Campaign
The major celebrations of the anniversary of the uprising in the Jewish ghetto in Nazi-occupied Warsaw are held each year at the Monument to the Ghetto Heroes and POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews. POLIN Museum created the Daffodils (żonkile) Campaign to commemorate the Warsaw ghetto uprising. Every year on April 19th, hundreds of volunteers hand out paper daffodils to raise awareness of the uprising and its significance (Marek Edelman, the last leader of the Uprising, before his death in 2009, used to lay daffodils at the Monument to the Ghetto Heroes every anniversary). Click here to read our tips in English on visiting the POLIN Museum, and here to read about visiting the POLIN Museum with children. Click here to read more in English about the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising.

Labor Day
A public/bank holiday in Poland. Stores are closed. Only some smaller local convenience stores can be open. Stores at gas stations are open 7/24. Usually, in Warsaw and other major cities in Poland, there are political marches to promote workers’ rights.

Flag Day
A regular working day in Poland. It’s a relatively new holiday in Poland (introduced in 2004). You can notice Polish flags in some private windows and balconies as well as displayed in public institutions’ buildings.

Constitution Day
A public/bank holiday in Poland. The May 3rd Constitution was passed in 1791 and is claimed to be the first written constitution in Europe and the second one in the world (after the American one). Usually, Constitution Day is celebrated with speeches, military parades, picnics.

Whit Sunday / Pentecost / Zielone Świątki
A public/bank holiday in Poland (always on Sunday anyway). The Day of Descent of the Holy Spirit – Zielone Świątki (Green Holidays). In Poland, some people decorate their homes with branches with green leaves.

Mother’s Day
It is a day when you visit or call your mum, send her a card, flowers or other gifts. Father’s Day in Poland is celebrated on June 23.

Corpus Christi / Boże Ciało
A public/bank holiday in Poland. Stores, malls, shopping centers are closed. Only some smaller local convenience stores can be open and stores at gas stations. The Catholic church organizes in each parish huge outdoor procession (in many places in Poland traffic is stopped during the processions). The procession stops at four altars temporarily built on the streets. Girls dressed in white scatter flower petals. The altars are decorated with birch-tree twigs which can be later taken home and are kept the whole year to protect a family.

Children’s Day 
Kids receive gifts. Schools and kindergartens host special events for kids – picnics, concerts, games, sports competitions, etc. There are many events for children organized all over Poland by the city authorities, institutions, theaters, restaurants.

End of the school year in Polish schools
The last day of the school year is celebrated with speeches, concerts, shows. Teachers get flowers. Parents of younger kids usually take a day or a few hours off to participate in the ceremonies. In 2024, the school year will resume on September 2. Click here to read our post about summer and winter school breaks in Poland.

The meteorological first day of summer
The beginning of astronomical summer is the longest day of the year. The sun will rise at 4.14 am and the sunset will start at 9 pm.  Click here to read more about the weather in Poland in the summer.

St. John’s Night / Wreaths (Noc Świętojańska / Wianki)
The holiday has a pagan background (a pagan name is Sobótka meaning fire). Nowadays, it is mostly the opportunity to celebrate midsummer with various festivities, including concerts, singing songs, bonfire jumping. Women wear wildflower wreaths that later are thrown into rivers or ponds.

Father’s Day
It’s not as loudly celebrated as Mother’s Day, however, each mother makes sure that children at least hug their father;)

Warsaw Uprising Remembrance Day (Dzień Pamięci Powstania Warszawskiego)
The anniversary of the outbreak of the Warsaw Uprising in 1944 against the Nazis. At precisely 5 pm all the Warsaw city sirens sound and lots of cars and pedestrians stop to commemorate and contemplate people who died in 1944.

Polish Army Day 
Bank/public holiday in Poland. Polish Army Day is marking the 1920 breakthrough battle called Cud nad Wisłą (the Miracle on the Vistula River) between the Poles under Marshal Piłsudski and the Bolsheviks. The main celebrations are held at Pilsudski Square (Plac Piłsudskiego), including parades and the president’s speech. August 15 marks also the Assumption of Mary celebrations in Poland which focus on The Sanctuary of Jasna Góra in Częstochowa – on August 15 a pilgrimage (pielgrzymka) destination for many people walking hundreds of kilometers for days from all over Poland. Stores, malls, shopping centers are closed, and only some smaller local convenience stores can be open (eg. Żabka). You can do basic shopping at gas stations (24h).

Commemoration of the anniversary of the outbreak of World War II
September 1 marks the anniversary of the outbreak of World War II. Events commemorating the outbreak of the war are held in various Polish cities.

The first day of school at Polish schools
The event includes short formal ceremonies (it’s not a regular full school day so parents of smaller children may need to take a day off). The school year in Poland is divided into 2 terms: the winter term (pierwszy semestr) and the summer term (drugi semestr). While the first and last days of school are set the same for all of Poland, the winter break (ferie zimowe) times differ for each Polish province/voivodship. Our post covers winter school breaks dates in Poland by voivodships.

World Cleanup Day 
Different locations all over Poland. Volunteers across the globe will gather to clean up litter and waste. World Cleanup Day – Poland (Facebook page, including events in Poland). World Cleanup Day – global website in English.

The first day of autumn
The astronomical (the autumnal equinox – the sun is directly over the equator) first day of autumn in Poland in 2024 falls on September 22 and the meteorological first day of autumn on September 23. After the autumnal equinox, the days in Poland get shorter and the nights get longer until the winter solstice on December 21 – the first day of winter and the day with the fewest hours of sunlight in Poland in the whole year. Read more about the weather, changes in nature, and seasonal fruits and vegetables in Poland in September, October & November.

Boy’s Day (Dzień Chłopaka)
This holiday in Poland is the equivalent of Women’s Day, which is celebrated in Poland on March 8. On Boy’s Day, ladies give their loved ones (younger and older) a gift or prepare another surprise.

Teachers’ Day in Poland (Dzień Nauczyciela)
In Polish schools, there are no regular classes on this day. Students give teachers flowers and/or other gifts. Usually, there is an inauguration event for first-grade students (called in Polish ślubowanie) and older kids either do not go to school or have some fun activities.

Time change (zmiana czasu)
On Sunday night, October 27, at 03:00 am clocks are turned backward 1 hour to 02:00 am. The change to summertime in Poland takes place on the last Sunday of March. Poland switches back to regular time on the last Sunday of October. The European Union lawmakers wanted to end the twice-a-year (March and October) custom of time changes throughout the European Union, leaving member states the freedom to decide their standard time. But the coronavirus pandemic has put these plans on hold. Click here to find out more in our post about the time changes in Poland.

Halloween
Halloween celebrations are relatively new in Poland. A few years ago, it was almost impossible to buy a pumpkin this time of year in Poland! Now pumpkin carving and pumpkin decorations are more and more popular in Polish schools and homes. In bars and restaurants in Poland, there are themed Halloween parties for adults and costume parties for kids at schools. More and more children in Poland dress up in costumes for Halloween and travel from house to house playing trick or treat (in Polish: cukierek albo psikus).

A public/bank holiday in Poland – All Saints’ Day (Wszystkich Świętych) 
It’s a Christian holiday. In Poland, it’s also called the Day of the Dead (Święto Zmarłych) and is deeply rooted in the Polish tradition – the holiday is observed by many people in Poland, regardless of their faith and beliefs. People visit cemeteries to light candles and lay flowers on the graves of their family and friends. Often they travel long distances, and in general, there is increased traffic, especially close to the biggest cemeteries. November 1 is a non-working day in Poland – schools, public institutions, most businesses and stores are closed. Shopping on November 1: stores, malls, shopping centers are closed, only some smaller local convenience stores can be open (eg. Żabka). You can always do basic shopping at gas stations (which are open 24/7).

A public/bank holiday in Poland – Independence Day (Święto Niepodległości)
The anniversary of the restoration of Poland’s independence in 1918. After 123 years (from the end of the 18th century until the end of World War I) of partitions by Austria, Russia, and Prussia Poland regained its independence. The national celebrations are usually held in Warsaw, at Piłsudski Square, at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, with the participation of the President of Poland, other leaders and officials, and representatives of the Polish Armed Forces.

St. Andrew’s Day Eve (Andrzejki)
It was believed that the night of November 29 / November 30 is suitable for magic and single girls could see their future (and their future husbands). Nowadays, it’s an opportunity for big parties and a night for future-telling games. The classic one is to pour hot liquid wax through a keyhole into cold water. After the wax is solidified, the shape and its shadow illuminated on the wall determine your future. The fun is to interpret the shape. Another tradition is a shoe game. Participants take off one shoe, the shoes are lined one after the other from the wall of the room to the door. The owner of the shoe that reaches the door first is the first to get married:)

St. Nicholas’ Day (Mikołajki)
The name Mikołajki comes from Mikołaj (Polish for Nicholas), meaning little Nicholas. On the night of December 5-6, small gifts are secretly given to children while they are sleeping (little treats – toys but most of all sweets). One of the traditions is to hide treats in shoes. Children should clean them the night before and the next morning (on Mikołajki day) they would find inside their shoes a small surprise. Chocolate Santas are most often such a gift – they can be bought in Polish stores already at the end of November. In Polish schools on December 6, there is a custom of exchanging small gifts between students. Children decide in advance the amount for which they will buy a gift and draw a person from the class to be given a gift.

The beginning of astronomical winter
The shortest day of the year. Click here to learn about the weather in Poland in the wintertime (December, January, and February).

Christmas Eve (Wigilia)
Christmas Eve is not a public holiday in Poland. However, most shops and businesses are open no longer than 2 pm. Christmas Eve Dinner – kolacja wigilijna – is the most important Christmas celebration in Poland. Click here to learn more about Christmas traditions and celebrations in Poland. The Christmas Eve traditions include waiting for a first star, the Christmas wafer (opłatek), 12 meat-free courses, an extra seat for an unexpected guest, hay under the tablecloth, and a special midnight mass (pasterka).

Christmas Day (Boże Narodzenie)
A public holiday in Poland. Stores, malls, shopping centers, public institutions, schools are CLOSED. People in Poland usually visit family and friends to celebrate together, they go to church, sing carols (kolędy), spend long hours at the table. Find out more about Christmas traditions and celebrations in Poland.

Second Day of Christmas (Drugi Dzień Świąt Bożego Narodzenia)
A public holiday in Poland. Stores, malls, shopping centers, public institutions, schools are CLOSED.

New Year’s Eve / St. Silvestre’s Day (Sylwester) 
Start of the carnival season in Poland. People usually go out to parties and balls. At midnight or even before, fireworks shows start, arranged by the city authorities but also outside of apartments, in parks, playgrounds, etc. Stores are usually open no longer than 5-6 pm.

Subscribe to our monthly newsletters in English to learn about Poland! Once a month you will receive a Newsletter: ‘Explore Poland with Kids‘. You will find there family-friendly destinations in Poland – beautiful places in Poland worth visiting with children – from city break destinations to hiking in the mountains (lots of practical tips!); things you can’t miss in Poland in a given month; dates to remember, holidays, observances in Poland in a given month so you can mark your calendars accordingly.