When is Epiphany?
In 2026, Epiphany falls on Tuesday, January 6, 2026. It is classified here as a Austrian public holiday.
History of Epiphany
Epiphany, known in Austria as Heilige Drei Könige, is the Christian feast of the Three Kings on January 6 and a nationwide statutory holiday. Catholic worship recalls the visitors who recognised Jesus, while Austrian custom places the feast at the end of the Christmas season. The date is fixed rather than calculated from Easter, and it remains January 6 even when it falls beside a weekend.
The most visible contemporary tradition is Sternsingen. Children and young people dress as the Magi, carry a star, sing at homes and collect donations for international development projects organised through Catholic parish networks. Groups commonly mark the doorway with a year and the letters C+M+B, understood liturgically as Christus mansionem benedicat—‘Christ bless this house’—rather than simply the legendary names Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar. Participation is voluntary and organised locally.
Austria’s Working Rest Act expressly lists this date among the statutory holidays. Covered employees are normally entitled to an uninterrupted 24-hour holiday rest period, although authorised essential, transport, hospitality and other exempt work can continue. Austria has no general rule moving a fixed holiday to Monday when it falls on a weekend; the calendar date remains the legal holiday.
How Epiphany is observed
A nationwide statutory holiday on January 6, with Catholic services and parish collections alongside the normal Austrian rules for holiday rest.
Traditions of Epiphany
Sternsinger visits
Costumed Three Kings groups sing from door to door and collect charitable donations through locally organised Catholic parish campaigns.
Doorway blessing
Participants write the year with C+M+B above doors, expressing the Latin blessing ‘Christ bless this house’ for residents.
Epiphany worship
Catholic parishes celebrate Mass and conclude the Christmas season, sometimes blessing water, incense or chalk used in household ceremonies.
Dates and observance rules are checked against the official Austria government holiday guidance. State, local, school and employer arrangements may differ from the nationwide statutory calendar.
History sources: Austria Working Rest Act, Section 7, City of Vienna official public-holiday calendar, Catholic Church in Austria: Sternsinger campaign, Encyclopaedia Britannica: the Christian liturgical year.
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