Seasons in Australia
Summer starts on Tuesday 1 December 2026
It runs to Sunday 28 February 2027: December, January and February, 90 days.
As of Saturday 24 October 2026, Sydney time.
Tuesday
1December 2026
The first day of summer 2026–27
in 38 days- Summer in Australia
- December, January and February
- Summer solstice
- Around 22 December — the longest day
Public holidays in summer 2026–27
- Thursday 24 December 2026: Christmas Eve, from 6pm to midnight — QLD.
- Thursday 24 December 2026: Christmas Eve, from 7pm to midnight — SA and the NT.
- Friday 25 December 2026: Christmas Day — every state and territory.
- Saturday 26 December 2026: Boxing Day — NSW, VIC, QLD, WA, the ACT and the NT.
- Saturday 26 December 2026: Proclamation Day holiday — SA.
- Monday 28 December 2026: Additional public holiday for Boxing Day — NSW, VIC, QLD, WA, the ACT and the NT.
- Monday 28 December 2026: Additional public holiday for Proclamation Day — SA.
- Monday 28 December 2026: Boxing Day holiday — TAS.
- Thursday 31 December 2026: New Year's Eve, from 7pm to midnight — SA and the NT.
- Friday 1 January 2027: New Year's Day — every state and territory.
- Tuesday 26 January 2027: Australia Day — every state and territory.
Statewide days only. Show days and other regional holidays are on each state's public holiday page.
Daylight saving
- No state or territory changes its clocks in summer.
The daylight saving page has every state's dates for three summers, and the law behind each.
Where the start date comes from
The Bureau of Meteorology counts Australia's seasons from the first of the month, not from the solstices and equinoxes, because that fits Australian temperatures better. The seasons page has all four side by side, and the tropics' wet and dry.
Frequently asked questions
Why does summer start on 1 December and not at the solstice?
Because the heat arrives well after the longest day. The Bureau of Meteorology uses the first of the month as the better fit with Australian temperatures: across much of the south the warmest week typically comes in late January or early February, weeks after the solstice.