A public holiday in New Zealand is a day off work or education. Waitangi Day is 6-February every year and that is the day seen as the public holiday unless 6-February falls on a weekend. In that case, weekday workers would get the following Monday off work. For people working on weekends, they would get 6-February off if it fell on a weekend.

Waitangi Day became an official public holiday in 1974, after initially being a holiday just in Auckland and Northland.

To check out New Zealand’s other public holiday, just give this a cheeky read.

How Do New Zealanders Celebrate Waitangi Day?

While some celebrate Waitangi Day as a celebration of the Maori culture or just being ecstatic that it usually means a “long weekend”, others have used the day to protest.

The official Waitangi celebration occurs on the Waitangi Treaty Grounds in the Bay of Islands with a ceremony and speeches from government officials taking place at the Te Tii Marae. Although it involves positive celebrations with festival-type events, it is also the location for protests.

Throughout the rest of New Zealand, communities come together with activities such as hangi (traditional Maori food), kapa haka performances (dancing) and tree planting to commemorate the coming together of people.