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We will travel to Stuttgart in Germany from 1st to 3rd of January. Will the shops there be open on 2nd of January or remain closed like in Switzerland and Bavaria? We are mostly interested in the large shopping malls and clothes shops. I know that most small businesses are closed till 4th Jan but what about the malls and "big brand"-shops (H&M/C&A/ZARA, Kaufland/Aldi/Lidl, Müller/DM, etc.)?

I found the websites of said companies to be inconclusive about this question at best, so I wonder if 2nd of January is a public holiday in Germany like in Switzerland or if it is a "normal" Saturday with most shops open.

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  • Generally yes, and additionally it will be a long Saturday. de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laden%C3%B6ffnungszeit
    – Gayot Fow
    Commented Dec 29, 2015 at 14:44
  • They are closed in Bavaria? Last I checked they still hadn't managed to gain independency, so it should be a normal Saturday there as well :)
    – YviDe
    Commented Dec 29, 2015 at 17:53
  • Thanks to the two of you! @YviDe: Only a few public holidays (like "Wiedervereinigung") are observed in whole Germany. The states have, like here in Switzerland, quite some freedom concerning this.
    – Patric Hartmann
    Commented Dec 29, 2015 at 20:27
  • @PatricHartmann I know, I'm German. But there's no special holiday in Bavaria on the 2nd. innenministerium.bayern.de/suk/bayern/feiertage/index.php
    – YviDe
    Commented Dec 29, 2015 at 20:29
  • @YviDe: Thanks for clarifying that too! My professor, a Nürnberger, told me that it is... Chances are, he was mistaken :)
    – Patric Hartmann
    Commented Dec 29, 2015 at 20:34

2 Answers 2

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The 2nd of January is not a public holiday in Germany. Since it is a Saturday, most shops should be open with their Saturday opening hours. For some local shops, this may mean that they close relatively early.

Having said that, some shops may be closed anyway "for holidays". Also, the beginning of the year is a classical time for making an inventory. Some shops close for that as doing a rolling inventory is a bit complicated. So if you plan to visit some shop on the 2nd of January, you may want to call them in advance in order to verify that they will open on that day.g

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  • Thank you for your answer! That's precisely what I was looking for.
    – Patric Hartmann
    Commented Dec 29, 2015 at 20:35
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As @DCLib has explained 2nd of January 2016 is not a public holiday and is a Saturday so most shops are opened, unless it's some local shops that are "on holiday".

Do note that on 3rd January 2016 is a Sunday but shops may still be opened depending on the city/state. For 3rd Jan 2016, these states have shops opened (usually their main city (haupstadt) central and possibly surrounding area):

  • Baden-Württemberg
  • Bayern
  • Berlin
  • Brandenburg
  • Bremen
  • Hamburg
  • Hessen
  • Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
  • Niedersachsen
  • Nordrhein-Westfalen
  • Rheinland-Pflaz
  • Saarland
  • Sachsen
  • Sachsen-Anhalt
  • Schleswig-Holstein
  • Thüringen

Keep a look out for verkaufsoffene Sonntage (http://www.verkaufsoffene-sonntage.com/sonntagsverkauf-2016/januar-2016/03-01-2016/) !!! It might some day save you from a hungry or shopless day in Germany

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    Wow... Thank you very much! That's very useful information. So chances are that in Stuttgart shops are even opened on Sunday.
    – Patric Hartmann
    Commented Dec 30, 2015 at 11:55
  • Oh if it's Stuttgart specifically, here's the specific site stuttgart.de/verkaufsoffene-sonntage Sadly it's not opened on 3rd Jan 2016 =( Usually googling the name of the city name + verkaufsoffene-sonntage will get you the link to the city's verkaufsoffene-sonntage =)
    – alvas
    Commented Dec 30, 2015 at 12:46

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