The bank holiday weekend is finally here, so are shops open on Easter Sunday for last-minute essentials?
Many shops have different guidelines for opening at the moment, even outside of the Easter 2021 weekend, which include new opening and closing times to help with social distancing. As always, it’s good to check ahead to avoid disappointment – especially where Easter eggs are involved.
Credit: Getty
The bank holiday weekend is finally here, so are shops open on Easter Sunday for last-minute essentials?
Many shops have different guidelines for opening at the moment, even outside of the Easter 2021 weekend, which include new opening and closing times to help with social distancing. As always, it’s good to check ahead to avoid disappointment – especially where Easter eggs are involved.
Whether it’s to pick up an extra bag of roast potatoes or shop for last minute Easter gifts for kids, to ensure a foolproof Easter lunch with all the traditional Easter feast offerings, we recommend getting clued up on what shops will be open across the whole weekend.
Are shops open on Easter Sunday 2022?
Larger supermarket stores tend to be closed on Easter Sunday, according to the yougov.co.uk website. This is because Easter Sunday is classed as a public holiday.
This means that a lot of the larger supermarkets are likely to be shut on Easter Sunday.
idl and Waitrose have confirmed that all their retail stores will be shut in England, Wales and Northern Ireland on Easter Sunday. Whilst in Scotland, their supermarket stores will continue “normal trading hours.”
Sainsbury’s and Tesco’s larger stores, plus Tesco Metro and Tesco Extra will also be closed on Easter Sunday. However, some of their smaller stores – Tesco Express and Sainsbury’s Local – are expected to open.
If in doubt, be sure to check opening times for these smaller stores on their website.
Though opening times on Easter Sunday vary, all supermarket stores will be open on Good Friday (2nd April), Easter Saturday (3rd April) and Easter Monday (5th April).
So there’s still time to grab bits for an Easter bonnet or hot cross buns around the all important weekend.
What about smaller supermarkets?
Smaller supermarkets like Tesco Express or Sainsbury’s Local aren’t necessarily subject to the same opening restrictions as bigger stores in England and Wales.
They are often open later into the evening most Sundays, to around 10 or 11pm.
As well as the smaller versions of superstores, others supermarket shops that will likely be open include:
- Budgens
- The Co-op
- Service station supermarkets
Smaller Marks and Spencer Food stores are likely to open, selling treats like the pink Gin and Tonic Easter Egg and chocolate Harry Potter Hedwig owl.
Credit: Getty
Whilst Farm shops are also allowed to stay open to sell their produce, but it’s always best to check ahead.
Why do supermarkets close on Easter Sunday?
Under government regulation, any shop over 280 metres must close on Easter Sunday and Christmas Day.
This is why larger supermarket stores such as Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Aldi and Lidl are closed on Easter Sunday 2021.
Shops are also required to only open for six hours on regular Sundays throughout the year. This is a tradition in England and Wales that comes from the Sunday Trading Act 1994, which restricted trading on Sundays to minimal hours and enforced closures on different days of the year.
It’s therefore a good idea to plan ahead and purchase all your favourite treats before Easter Sunday to save disappointment.
Bank holiday opening hours: Tesco, Asda, Aldi, Morrisons and Lidl closing times for today’s New Year holiday
This year’s bank holidays moved from Christmas Day and New Year’s Day, which means further changes to supermarket opening times
It’s almost time to bid farewell to the festive period, with Monday 3 January representing our final bank holiday of the season.
This year, both Christmas Day and New Year’s Day fell on a Saturday, which meant our holidays moved to the following Monday.
While this gave us a couple of very welcome long weekends in succession, it has meant that supermarket opening times have been even more disrupted than usual.
Here are the key details about the UK’s most popular supermarkets for the first bank holiday of the year, and how to find the opening times for your local stores.
Tesco
Many Tesco’s supermarkets appear to be running with standard Monday hours for the bank holiday, with Extra superstores open until midnight.
However, others are at somewhere between Sunday hours and normal service, with supermarkets opening from 8.00am to 6.00pm.
Tesco Express stores are running normal working hours, closing at 11.00pm or midnight.
Morrisons
Morrisons supermarkets appear to be operating normal opening hours on the bank holiday Monday, with stores closing at 9.00pm or 10.00pm as usual.
The company’s own Christmas opening hours listings finish on Sunday 2 January, indicating that it’s business as usual from now on.
Asda
Asda superstores are running slightly reduced opening hours today, with the majority of supermarkets open from 8:00am to 8:00pm, rather then closing at midnight or operating 24 hours.
You can find your local store and check the opening times here.
Aldi
Aldi supermarkets are operating normal working hours for the bank holiday, with the majority of stores opening from 8.00am to 8.00pm.
You can find your local store and check the opening times here.
Lidl
Many Lidl supermarkets appear to be back to normal service, with stores open from 7.00am to 10.00pm or 11.00pm as usual.
However, others are operating at slightly reduced times, with supermarkets that would usually be open until 11.00pm closing at 8.00pm or 10.00pm.
You can find your local store and check the opening times here.
Waitrose
While some Waitrose supermarkets are operating normal hours, others are running between Sunday and regular opening times.
So some stores are opening from 9.00am or 10.00am until 8.00pm, and others from 10.00am to 6.00pm.
You can find your local store and check the opening times here.
Why is Monday 3 January a bank holiday?
When New Year’s Day falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the UK bank holiday is pushed back one working day to ensure that the public doesn’t miss out.
So this year’s holiday falls on Monday 3 January for all four UK nations. Scotland then gets an additional bank holiday on Tuesday 4 January, which is a substitute for what would usually be 2 January.
The same thing happens with Christmas. This year, Christmas Day and Boxing Day were on Saturday and Sunday, so the bank holidays moved to Monday 27 December and Tuesday 28 December.
Next year, New Year’s Day falls on a Sunday, so the first bank holiday of 2023 will fall on Monday 2 January.
