21st November 2025 - 7 min read
Most of us look at public holidays with basic math: 14 days of annual leave plus whatever falls on weekdays. But with some strategic planning, and our cheat codes for leave days, you could turn those same days into 50+ days of travel by stacking holidays.
The strategy comes down to timing. Use those 14 days to bridge public holidays and create longer breaks. Then, because this is RinggitPlus, we’ve got some great ideas to layer on credit card perks for lounge access, miles, and complimentary travel insurance.
Airlines are opening their 2026 booking windows right now. If you’re serious about maximising your credit card miles and annual leave, the planning needs to start before the calendar changes.
Here’s every public holiday in 2026 and how to maximise them with strategic leave days:
New Year’s Day (January 1 – January 4, Thurs – Sun)
Thaipusam & Federal Territory Day (January 31 – February 2, Sat – Mon)
Chinese New Year (February 17-18, Tue-Wed)
Hari Raya Aidilfitri (March 21-22, Sat-Sun)
Labour Day (May 1, Friday)
Wesak Day (May 31, Sunday)
Hari Raya Aidiladha (May 26, Wednesday)
Awal Muharram (June 17, Wednesday)
Prophet Muhammad’s Birthday (August 25, Tuesday)
Merdeka Day (August 31, Monday)
Malaysia Day (September 16, Wednesday)
Deepavali (November 8, Sunday)
Christmas Day (December 25, Friday)
Total strategic leave needed: 13 days to unlock more than 50 days of travel
Now that you’ve mapped out your long weekends, the next step is setting up the right credit cards to maximise every travel booking. Whether you’re redeeming miles for flights, accessing airport lounges, or getting automatic travel insurance, having the right cards makes the difference between paying full price and travelling smarter.
The Alliance Bank Visa Virtual Credit Card earns 8x Three-year Bonus Points (TBP) for every RM1 spent on online shopping and e-wallet reloads, capped at RM3,000 per statement cycle. All other transactions earn 1x TBP. Convert 15,000 TBP to 1,000 Enrich Points or 6,000 TBP to 1,000 AirAsia Points. The 8x earning rate makes this card particularly strong for online spend.
The Maybank 2 Gold/Platinum Cards earn 5x TreatsPoints for all weekday spending on your Maybank 2 American Express Card, or 1x TreatsPoint on all spending with the MasterCard or Visa option. Every 20,000 TreatsPoints converts to 1,000 Enrich, KrisFlyer, or Asia Miles. This works out well if you concentrate your weekday purchases on the Amex card.
The UOB PRVI Miles card earns 5 UNIRinggit points per RM1 on overseas and online foreign currency transactions. Spend RM10,000 on overseas bookings and flights throughout the year? You’ve generated 48,000 UNIRinggit points, which can be converted to Air Asia points, Enrich Miles, and Krisflyer Miles.
The RHB World MasterCard credit card offers 6 complimentary lounge visits per year at Plaza Premium Lounges worldwide. Each visit covers the primary cardholder, and you can bring guests by paying a discounted 25% off walk-in rate. The card is free for life, so you won’t have to pay the annual fee.
The HSBC Visa Signature Credit Card also offers 6 complimentary lounge visits per year at participating Plaza Premium lounges globally. The annual fee is RM600, waived if you spend RM24,000 annually. This card works well if you travel less frequently but still want lounge access for major trips.
Lounge access becomes especially valuable during delays or early morning flights. The 6am departure to Bangkok suddenly feels civilised when you’ve had a proper breakfast and shower before boarding.
The AmBank Visa Signature Card also offers 6 complimentary lounge visits per year for both the principal cardholder and supplementary cardholders. Apply for a supplementary card for your spouse, and you both get your own allocation of lounge access without sharing from a single pool.
If you qualify for premium cards, the Maybank World Elite provides 16 complimentary lounge visits per year that can be shared between the principal cardholder and a guest. This means you can bring someone along on each visit, or split the 16 visits however works best for your travel patterns. The flexibility makes it particularly useful for couples who travel together frequently.The HSBC TravelOne Credit Card provides 6 complimentary visits per year to Plaza Premium Lounges that both the principal and supplementary cardholders can share. Apply for a supplementary card for your spouse, and you both draw from the same pool of 6 visits. This works well if you travel together or coordinate your lounge usage throughout the year.
Many premium credit cards include automatic travel insurance when you charge flight tickets to the card. If you’re already paying annual fees for a travel credit card, you might be covered without realising it.
When you book family travel, the airline’s add-on insurance typically costs RM50-80 per person. Four family members flying to London? That’s RM200-320 in insurance premiums for a single trip.
Several credit cards include automatic travel insurance when you charge the full fare to the card:
Coverage typically includes
Over a year with two family trips, this automatic insurance saves RM400-600 in premiums you would have paid separately. The credit card annual fee (typically RM800-1,000) starts looking reasonable when you factor in these automatic benefits.
Always review the specific coverage details and exclusions in your card’s policy document. Automatic insurance works well for straightforward trips but may have limitations on adventure activities, pre-existing medical conditions, or specific destinations.
You know which days to book off, which cards deliver the most value, and how to stack rewards for maximum return.
The trickiest bit? Getting your leave approved before your colleagues book the same weeks. Pull up your calendar, mark the dates that work for your situation, and before you book anything, compare travel credit cards based on how you actually spend. Some people fly more, some people need family coverage, and some people just want lounge access for early morning flights.
Happy booking!
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