May begins with two important public holidays in the Czech Republic: Labour Day and Victory Day. In 2025, both fall on a Thursday – but only one of them involves nationwide shop closures.
Labour Day is celebrated on 1 May and is classified as one of the so-called ‘other public holidays’ under Czech law. This means that while employees are not required to work, shop opening hours remain the same as on an ordinary weekday.
In practice, retailers can decide for themselves whether to close on this day, as Penny-Markt did at Easter. So far, no supermarket chain has announced such a decision for the May bank holiday.
On 8 May, however – the day marking the end of the Second World War (Victory Day) – large shops must remain closed. This is stipulated by the Retail Trade Act of 2016, which requires all shops with a sales area of more than 200 square metres to close on this day.
The only exceptions are pharmacies, health food stores, petrol stations, and shops located at airports, railway stations, and bus stations. Large shops in the underground must also remain closed, as they are not covered by these exceptions.
May Day Holidays in Neighbouring Countries
In all neighbouring countries, 1 May is celebrated as Labour Day. However, the end of the Second World War is commemorated only in Slovakia. Additionally, each of the Czech Republic’s neighbours has its own public holidays, which are not observed in the Czech Republic.
- Slovakia: 1 May and 8 May
- Poland: 1 May and 3 May (Constitution Day)
- Germany: 1 May and 29 May (Ascension Day)
- Austria: 1 May and 29 May (Ascension Day)
Opening Hours of Shops in the Czech Republic on Public Holidays
- 1 January – New Year’s Day – closed
- Good Friday – open
- Easter Monday – closed
- 1 May – Labour Day – open
- 8 May – Victory Day – closed
- 5 July – Day of the Slavic Apostles Cyril and Methodius – open
- 6 July – Day of the Burning of Jan Hus – open
- 28 September – Day of Czech Statehood – closed
- 28 October – Day of the Foundation of the Independent Czechoslovak State – closed
- 17 November – Day of the Struggle for Freedom and Democracy – closed
- 24 December – Christmas Eve – open until 12:00 noon
- 25 December – Christmas Day – closed
- 26 December – Boxing Day (2nd Christmas Day) – closed
