If you love time off work, 2026 could be a great year for you. With smart planning, you can stretch your paid time off and enjoy longer breaks without using many vacation days.
In 2026, several major holidays fall on weekends, including Valentine’s Day, Juneteenth, the Fourth of July, Halloween, and Christmas. That already gives many workers built in long weekends. You can make these breaks even better by planning PTO around them.
You can also create four day weekends by taking Fridays off before Monday federal holidays. These include Martin Luther King Day, Presidents’ Day, Memorial Day, and Labor Day. By using just one day of PTO, you get four days to relax, travel, or recharge.
If your job allows 15 PTO days per year, careful planning could give you up to nine three day weekends and still leave enough days for a full weeklong vacation. That means more rest, less burnout, and better work life balance.
The key is planning early and submitting requests before calendars fill up. A little strategy can turn a regular year into one filled with mini vacations.