Long weekends in Malaysia, 2027
Sabah gets 14 chances at a long weekend next year. Kelantan gets 11. Same country, same calendar.
That gap isn't luck. It comes down to which holidays your state observes, which day your weekend falls on, and whether a holiday lands on a Tuesday or a Saturday. A holiday on a Saturday is, for most people, no holiday at all.
Here is every long weekend in 2027, split into the ones that cost you nothing and the ones you can buy with a single day of leave.
The free ones
A public holiday that falls next to your weekend gives you three days off without touching your leave balance. In 2027 the typical Malaysian state gets 7 of them.
| Dates | Days off | Holiday | States |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1–3 January 2027 | 3 | New Year's Day | Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Pulau Pinang, Sabah, Sarawak, Selangor, W.P. Kuala Lumpur, W.P. Labuan, W.P. Putrajaya |
| 22–24 January 2027 | 3 | Thaipusam | Johor, Negeri Sembilan, Perak, Pulau Pinang, Selangor, W.P. Kuala Lumpur, W.P. Putrajaya |
| 30 January – 1 February 2027 | 3 | Federal Territory Day | W.P. Kuala Lumpur, W.P. Labuan, W.P. Putrajaya |
| 5–8 February 2027 | 4 | Chinese New Year / Chinese New Year — second day / Awal Ramadan † | Kedah |
| 5–7 February 2027 | 3 | Chinese New Year / Chinese New Year — second day | Kelantan, Terengganu |
| 6–8 February 2027 | 3 | Chinese New Year / Chinese New Year — second day / Chinese New Year (in lieu) / Awal Ramadan † | Johor, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Perlis, Pulau Pinang, Sabah, Sarawak, Selangor, W.P. Kuala Lumpur, W.P. Labuan, W.P. Putrajaya |
| 4–6 March 2027 | 3 | Installation of the Sultan of Terengganu | Terengganu |
| 10–13 March 2027 | 4 | Hari Raya Aidilfitri / Hari Raya Aidilfitri — second day † | Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu |
| 10–14 March 2027 | 5 | Hari Raya Aidilfitri / Hari Raya Aidilfitri — second day / Hari Raya Aidilfitri — third day † | Melaka |
| 26–28 March 2027 | 3 | Good Friday | Sabah, Sarawak |
| 14–18 May 2027 | 5 | Arafat Day / Hari Raya Haji / Hari Raya Haji — second day † | Kelantan, Terengganu |
| 15–17 May 2027 | 3 | Hari Raya Haji † | Johor, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Pulau Pinang, Sabah, Sarawak, Selangor, W.P. Kuala Lumpur, W.P. Labuan, W.P. Putrajaya |
| 15–18 May 2027 | 4 | Raja of Perlis' Birthday / Hari Raya Haji / Hari Raya Haji — second day † | Perlis |
| 20–22 May 2027 | 3 | Wesak Day | Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu |
| 29 May – 1 June 2027 | 4 | Pesta Kaamatan / Pesta Kaamatan — second day / Pesta Kaamatan (in lieu) | Sabah, W.P. Labuan |
| 4–7 June 2027 | 4 | Awal Muharram / Agong's Birthday † | Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu |
| 5–8 June 2027 | 4 | Awal Muharram / Agong's Birthday / Awal Muharram (in lieu) † | Johor, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Perlis, Pulau Pinang, Sabah, Sarawak, Selangor, W.P. Kuala Lumpur, W.P. Labuan, W.P. Putrajaya |
| 18–20 June 2027 | 3 | Sultan of Kedah's Birthday | Kedah |
| 30 July – 1 August 2027 | 3 | Sultan of Pahang's Birthday | Pahang |
| 13–15 August 2027 | 3 | Maulidur Rasul † | Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu |
| 14–16 August 2027 | 3 | Maulidur Rasul / Maulidur Rasul (in lieu) † | Johor, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Perlis, Pulau Pinang, Sabah, Sarawak, Selangor, W.P. Kuala Lumpur, W.P. Labuan, W.P. Putrajaya |
| 16–18 September 2027 | 3 | Malaysia Day | Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu |
| 29 September – 2 October 2027 | 4 | Sultan of Kelantan's Birthday / Sultan of Kelantan's Birthday — second day | Kelantan |
| 28–30 October 2027 | 3 | Deepavali | Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu |
| 5–7 November 2027 | 3 | Sultan of Perak's Birthday | Perak |
| 24–26 December 2027 | 3 | Christmas Day / Israk and Mikraj / Christmas Eve † | Kedah, Sabah, Terengganu |
| 25–27 December 2027 | 3 | Christmas Day / Israk and Mikraj / Israk and Mikraj (in lieu) † | Negeri Sembilan, Perlis |
Terengganu does unusually well here, and for a reason most people never think about: its weekend is Friday and Saturday. A holiday on a Sunday is a wasted day in Kuala Lumpur and an extra one in Kuala Terengganu.
The ones worth one day of leave
These are the gaps — a single working day sitting between a holiday and a weekend. Spend one day of leave and you get four days off. It is the best return available in the entire calendar, and it is the thing most people miss, because you have to be looking at the whole year to see it.
| Take this day | You get | Total days off | States |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 January 2027 | 6–9 January 2027 | 4 | Kedah, Terengganu |
| 15 January 2027 | 14–17 January 2027 | 4 | Negeri Sembilan |
| 25 February 2027 | 24–27 February 2027 | 4 | Kelantan, Terengganu |
| 12 March 2027 | 10–14 March 2027 | 5 | Johor, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Perlis, Pulau Pinang, Sabah, Sarawak, Selangor, W.P. Kuala Lumpur, W.P. Labuan, W.P. Putrajaya |
| 22 March 2027 | 20–23 March 2027 | 4 | Johor |
| 29 March 2027 | 26–30 March 2027 | 5 | Sabah |
| 25 April 2027 | 23–26 April 2027 | 4 | Terengganu |
| 16 May 2027 | 14–18 May 2027 | 5 | Kedah |
| 19 May 2027 | 17–22 May 2027 | 6 | Kedah |
| 19 May 2027 | 14–22 May 2027 | 9 | Kelantan, Terengganu |
| 19 May 2027 | 15–20 May 2027 | 6 | Perlis |
| 21 May 2027 | 20–23 May 2027 | 4 | Johor, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Perlis, Pulau Pinang, Sabah, Sarawak, Selangor, W.P. Kuala Lumpur, W.P. Labuan, W.P. Putrajaya |
| 31 May 2027 | 29 May – 2 June 2027 | 5 | Sarawak |
| 23 July 2027 | 22–25 July 2027 | 4 | Sarawak |
| 23 August 2027 | 21–24 August 2027 | 4 | Melaka |
| 30 August 2027 | 28–31 August 2027 | 4 | Johor, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Perlis, Pulau Pinang, Sabah, Sarawak, Selangor, W.P. Kuala Lumpur, W.P. Labuan, W.P. Putrajaya |
| 17 September 2027 | 16–19 September 2027 | 4 | Johor, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Perlis, Pulau Pinang, Sabah, Sarawak, Selangor, W.P. Kuala Lumpur, W.P. Labuan, W.P. Putrajaya |
| 29 October 2027 | 28–31 October 2027 | 4 | Johor, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Perlis, Pulau Pinang, Sabah, Selangor, W.P. Kuala Lumpur, W.P. Labuan, W.P. Putrajaya |
Your state, ranked
| State | Free long weekends | One-day bridges | Total opportunities |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sabah | 8 | 6 | 14 |
| Terengganu | 10 | 4 | 14 |
| Negeri Sembilan | 7 | 6 | 13 |
| Kedah | 9 | 3 | 12 |
| Perak | 7 | 5 | 12 |
| Sarawak | 6 | 6 | 12 |
| W.P. Kuala Lumpur | 7 | 5 | 12 |
| W.P. Labuan | 7 | 5 | 12 |
| W.P. Putrajaya | 7 | 5 | 12 |
| Johor | 5 | 6 | 11 |
| Kelantan | 9 | 2 | 11 |
| Melaka | 6 | 5 | 11 |
| Pahang | 6 | 5 | 11 |
| Perlis | 5 | 6 | 11 |
| Pulau Pinang | 6 | 5 | 11 |
| Selangor | 6 | 5 | 11 |
If your state sits near the bottom, it is usually one of two things. Either several of its holidays landed on a weekend this year, or it observes fewer state holidays to begin with. Neither is permanent — the same state can top the table the following year, because Islamic holidays move about eleven days earlier each year and drag the pattern with them.
Why states differ at all
Malaysia has federal holidays that everyone gets — Merdeka, Malaysia Day, Labour Day, Chinese New Year, the two Rayas, Deepavali, Christmas, Wesak, the Agong's birthday. On top of those, each state adds its own: a Sultan's birthday, a state day, a religious observance particular to that state.
Then there are three states — Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu — where the weekend is Friday and Saturday rather than Saturday and Sunday. This changes the maths completely. A holiday on a Sunday is an ordinary day off in most of Malaysia and a bonus working-day holiday in those three.
And three states observe the third day of Hari Raya, or a second day of Raya Haji, that the rest of the country does not.
Before you book anything
Islamic holidays — both Rayas, Awal Muharram, Maulidur Rasul, Nuzul Al-Quran, Israk and Mikraj — are confirmed by moon sighting and can shift by a day at short notice. Every date on this page marked with a dagger is one of those.
States can also declare a cuti peristiwa with days of notice, usually for a royal event or a sporting win. Those cannot be predicted by anyone.
Our dates come from the Cabinet's gazetted list and were last checked on 24 August 2026. Confirm with your employer before you buy a flight.
Plan it properly
The tables above show the obvious wins. The planner finds the rest — including the longer bridges, where three or four days of leave buy you nine or eleven days off.