Melbourne Cup Day is a public holiday across metropolitan Melbourne. Some regional Victorian councils hold a local day in its place. Here is who, when, and where we got it.
Council dates last checked 25 October 2026. Where we have no confirmed date, we say so.
The quick answer
Melbourne Cup Day is Tuesday 3 November 2026 in 2026 and Tuesday 2 November 2027 in 2027. Under the Public Holidays Act 1993 (Vic), only non-metropolitan councils can ask to hold a different day, so metropolitan Melbourne keeps Cup Day. The full year is on the Victoria public holidays page.
Regional substitutes
Some cover a whole council, some only part of one. Select a row for its source.
| Council or area | 2026 | 2027 | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Warrnambool2026: 2027: No confirmed date yet | No confirmed date yet | 25 October 2026 | |
| Moyne2026: 2027: No confirmed date yet | No confirmed date yet | 25 October 2026 | |
| Greater Geelong2026: 2027: No confirmed date yet | No confirmed date yet | 25 October 2026 | |
| Wodonga2026: 2027: No confirmed date yet | No confirmed date yet | 25 October 2026 | |
| Murtoa and district (Yarriambiack)2026: 2027: No confirmed date yet | No confirmed date yet | 25 October 2026 | |
| Warracknabeal and district (Yarriambiack)2026: 2027: No confirmed date yet | No confirmed date yet | 25 October 2026 | |
| Western Mildura (Boinka and west)2026: 2027: No confirmed date yet | No confirmed date yet | 25 October 2026 | |
| Rainbow, Albacutya and Kenmare (Hindmarsh)2026: 2027: No confirmed date yet | No confirmed date yet | 25 October 2026 | |
| Nhill and surrounds (Hindmarsh)2026: 2027: No confirmed date yet | No confirmed date yet | 25 October 2026 | |
| Numurkah District (Moira)2026: 2027: No confirmed date yet | No confirmed date yet | 25 October 2026 | |
| Greater Bendigo, west of the Campaspe River2026: 2027: No confirmed date yet | No confirmed date yet | 25 October 2026 | |
| Parts of Macedon Ranges (postcodes 3444, 3446, 3458)2026: 2027: No confirmed date yet | No confirmed date yet | 25 October 2026 |
Metropolitan Melbourne
We treat these 31 councils as metropolitan Melbourne. We built the list ourselves rather than copying the statutory definition, so if you work near the edge of Melbourne, check the council against the Act.
Not in either list? Then we don’t have a confirmed answer for your council. We haven’t verified that the regional list above is complete, and a missing council isn’t proof that it keeps Cup Day.
Sources
The state and council websites block automated downloads, so we haven't read every notice ourselves. Most council dates come from third-party pages that cite Business Victoria's list, and we mark them as weaker sources. We re-check each row by hand every year.
Council: Warrnambool
Warrnambool Cup Day: Thu 7 May 2026Weaker source
Third-party page citing the official list. Business Victoria non-metropolitan public holidays 2026 (list updated 3 Aug 2026), as cited by whenday.au and ozworkingdaycalc.com; council gazette notice not located. business.vic.gov.au. Last checked .
Council: Moyne
Moyne local holiday: Thu 7 May 2026Weaker source
Third-party page citing the official list. Business Victoria non-metropolitan public holidays 2026 (list updated 3 Aug 2026), as cited by whenday.au and ozworkingdaycalc.com; council gazette notice not located. business.vic.gov.au. Last checked .
Council: Greater Geelong, Geelong
Geelong Cup Day: Wed 21 Oct 2026Weaker source
Third-party page citing the official list. Business Victoria non-metropolitan public holidays 2026 (list updated 3 Aug 2026), as cited by whenday.au and ozworkingdaycalc.com; council gazette notice not located. business.vic.gov.au. Last checked .
Council: Wodonga
Wodonga Gold Cup: Fri 27 Nov 2026Weaker source
Third-party page citing the official list. Business Victoria non-metropolitan public holidays 2026 (list updated 3 Aug 2026), as cited by whenday.au and ozworkingdaycalc.com; council gazette notice not located. business.vic.gov.au. Last checked .
Council: Yarriambiack
Places we have on the list: Murtoa.
Murtoa local holiday: Fri 2 Oct 2026Weaker source
Third-party page citing the official list. Victoria Government Gazette G24, 11 June 2026 (as cited by ozworkingdaycalc.com). business.vic.gov.au. Last checked .
District beyond the township is not itemised in the sources.
Council: Yarriambiack
Places we have on the list: Warracknabeal.
Warracknabeal local holiday (half day): Thu 8 Oct 2026 (from 12pm)Weaker source
Third-party page citing the official list. Victoria Government Gazette G24, 11 June 2026 (as cited by ozworkingdaycalc.com). business.vic.gov.au. Last checked .
Warracknabeal local holiday (half day): Tue 3 Nov 2026 (from 12pm)Weaker source
Third-party page citing the official list. Victoria Government Gazette G24, 11 June 2026 (as cited by ozworkingdaycalc.com). business.vic.gov.au. Last checked .
Two half days from noon replace the full Cup Day.
Council: Mildura
Places we have on the list: Boinka.
Mildura (west) local holiday: Wed 7 Oct 2026Weaker source
Third-party page citing the official list. Business Victoria non-metropolitan public holidays 2026 (list updated 3 Aug 2026), as cited by whenday.au and ozworkingdaycalc.com; council gazette notice not located. business.vic.gov.au. Last checked .
Area is "west of and including Boinka, south of Murray Sunset National Park". Only part of the council area is covered; the places listed are the ones the sources name. Other localities in the area are not itemised.
Council: Hindmarsh
Places we have on the list: Rainbow, Albacutya, Kenmare.
Rainbow local holiday: Tue 13 Oct 2026Weaker source
Third-party page citing the official list. Business Victoria non-metropolitan public holidays 2026 (list updated 3 Aug 2026), as cited by whenday.au and ozworkingdaycalc.com; council gazette notice not located. business.vic.gov.au. Last checked .
Council: Hindmarsh
Places we have on the list: Broughton, Yanac, Netherby, Lorquon, Nhill, Glenlee, Kiata, Gerang Gerung, Little Desert.
Nhill local holiday: Thu 15 Oct 2026Weaker source
Third-party page citing the official list. Business Victoria non-metropolitan public holidays 2026 (list updated 3 Aug 2026), as cited by whenday.au and ozworkingdaycalc.com; council gazette notice not located. business.vic.gov.au. Last checked .
Council: Moira
Places we have on the list: Numurkah.
Numurkah local holiday: Wed 21 Oct 2026Weaker source
Third-party page citing the official list. Business Victoria non-metropolitan public holidays 2026 (list updated 3 Aug 2026), as cited by whenday.au and ozworkingdaycalc.com; council gazette notice not located. business.vic.gov.au. Last checked .
District beyond the township is not itemised in the sources.
Council: Greater Bendigo
Bendigo Cup Day: Wed 28 Oct 2026Weaker source
Third-party page citing the official list. Business Victoria non-metropolitan public holidays 2026 (list updated 3 Aug 2026), as cited by whenday.au and ozworkingdaycalc.com; council gazette notice not located. business.vic.gov.au. Last checked .
Areas east of the river (including Heathcote) keep Melbourne Cup Day.
Council: Macedon Ranges
Places we have on the list: Cadello, Carlsruhe.
Postcodes: 3444, 3446, 3458.
Kyneton Cup Day: Wed 4 Nov 2026Weaker source
Third-party page citing the official list. Business Victoria non-metropolitan public holidays 2026 (list updated 3 Aug 2026), as cited by whenday.au and ozworkingdaycalc.com; council gazette notice not located. business.vic.gov.au. Last checked .
Common questions
Yes, in metropolitan Melbourne. Melbourne Cup Day is a public holiday on Tuesday 3 November 2026 and Tuesday 2 November 2027.
Greater Geelong holds Geelong Cup Day on Wednesday 21 October 2026 instead of Melbourne Cup Day in 2026. We don't have a confirmed Geelong date for 2027 yet.
For 2026 we have: Warrnambool; Moyne; Greater Geelong; Wodonga; Murtoa and district (Yarriambiack); Warracknabeal and district (Yarriambiack); Western Mildura (Boinka and west); Rainbow, Albacutya and Kenmare (Hindmarsh); Nhill and surrounds (Hindmarsh); Numurkah District (Moira); Greater Bendigo, west of the Campaspe River; Parts of Macedon Ranges (postcodes 3444, 3446, 3458). Some cover only part of the council area, and the table above says which. We have no confirmed 2027 dates for any of them yet.
Then we don't have a confirmed answer for it, and we won't guess. We haven't verified that the regional list is complete, so don't assume it keeps Melbourne Cup Day. Check Business Victoria's list or ask your employer.
For shift workers
A date on this page tells you when the holiday is. It doesn’t tell you what you’re owed. That depends on your award or agreement. Find yours in our list of supported awards, then use Pay Check to compare your payslip against it.
Whether you get a higher rate, a flat extra amount or nothing extra for hours worked on a public holiday is set by your award or enterprise agreement, and by how your employer applies it.
Some agreements give time off or an extra day instead of, or on top of, extra pay. Others don't. Check your agreement's wording, or ask payroll.
Whether you are paid for a public holiday you were not rostered on also depends on your award or agreement and your employment type.
Some holidays apply in one region only, or only from a set hour. When Shift It can’t confirm a day applies at your workplace, it marks it “may apply” and leaves it out of your total.