the Netherlands · 2026
Brugdagen 2026 in the NetherlandsThe best bridge days to maximise your time off
Brugdagen (bridge days) are workdays squeezed between public holidays and weekends. Take those few days as PTO and short gaps become long consecutive breaks. Based on the 9 public holidays in the Netherlands in 2026, here are the 6 best opportunities.
18
PTO days
44
days off
Taking every bridge day below turns 18 PTO days into 44 consecutive days off across the year.
Jan 1 – Jan 4, 2026
1 PTO day → 4 days off
Built around New Year's Day (Thu, Jan 1).
Take PTO on: Fri, Jan 2
Apr 4 – Apr 12, 2026
4 PTO days → 9 days off
Built around Easter Sunday (Sun, Apr 5) and Easter Monday (Mon, Apr 6).
Take PTO on: Tue, Apr 7Wed, Apr 8Thu, Apr 9Fri, Apr 10
Apr 25 – May 3, 2026
4 PTO days → 9 days off
Built around King's Day (Mon, Apr 27).
Take PTO on: Tue, Apr 28Wed, Apr 29Thu, Apr 30Fri, May 1
May 14 – May 17, 2026
1 PTO day → 4 days off
Built around Ascension Day (Thu, May 14).
Take PTO on: Fri, May 15
May 23 – May 31, 2026
4 PTO days → 9 days off
Built around Pentecost (Sun, May 24) and Whit Monday (Mon, May 25).
Take PTO on: Tue, May 26Wed, May 27Thu, May 28Fri, May 29
Dec 19 – Dec 27, 2026
4 PTO days → 9 days off
Built around Christmas Day (Fri, Dec 25) and St. Stephen's Day (Sat, Dec 26).
Take PTO on: Mon, Dec 21Tue, Dec 22Wed, Dec 23Thu, Dec 24
Want a plan built around your PTO budget?
The free optimizer combines these bridge days with your available PTO, block days, and on-call periods — and lets you compare six planning strategies.
Optimize My 2026 PTO