In Massachusetts, liquor stores are closed on two holidays each year: Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. They also cannot start selling until noon on Memorial Day, and they are barred from selling during polling hours on state and local election days unless the city or town has waived that rule. On every other legal holiday, package stores keep their normal hours.
Thanksgiving and Christmas: Full Closure
Package stores (what the statute calls “Section 15 licensees”) cannot sell or deliver any alcoholic beverages on Thanksgiving Day or Christmas Day. These are the only two days of the year when Massachusetts requires off-premises alcohol sales to shut down entirely, and no local board can override the closure.1General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts Code Part I, Title XX, Chapter 138, Section 33
Plan ahead. If you want wine for Thanksgiving dinner or something to pour on Christmas Eve for the next day, buy it the day before.
Memorial Day: No Sales Before Noon
On Memorial Day, the last Monday in May, package stores can open but cannot sell or deliver alcohol before 12:00 noon. The statute treats a pre-noon sale on Memorial Day the same as a sale on a fully closed day.1General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts Code Part I, Title XX, Chapter 138, Section 33 For a cookout, shop Sunday or wait until the afternoon.
Election Days: Check Your Town
Massachusetts law prohibits package stores from selling or delivering alcohol during polling hours on any day when a state or municipal election, caucus, or primary is held in the city or town where the store operates. That covers local elections and primaries, not just the November general election.1General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts Code Part I, Title XX, Chapter 138, Section 33
The restriction does not apply if the local licensing authority has issued an order waiving it for all licensees in the jurisdiction. Many Massachusetts municipalities have done so, which means whether your neighborhood liquor store is open on election day depends entirely on where you live. If you are not sure, call the store before you drive over.
Holidays When Liquor Stores Stay Open
Every other Massachusetts legal holiday is a normal operating day for package stores. That includes:
- New Year’s Day (January 1)
- Martin Luther King Jr. Day (third Monday in January)
- Washington’s Birthday (third Monday in February)
- Patriots’ Day (third Monday in April)
- Juneteenth Independence Day (June 19)
- Independence Day (July 4)
- Labor Day (first Monday in September)
- Columbus Day (second Monday in October)
- Veterans Day (November 11)
The state recognizes all of these as legal holidays,2Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth. Holiday Information but none of them trigger a mandatory closure or restricted hours for package stores under Section 33.1General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts Code Part I, Title XX, Chapter 138, Section 33
Restaurants, Bars, Breweries, and Wineries Are Different
If a package store is closed, a restaurant with a liquor license is not a workaround. Restaurants hold on-premises licenses, meaning you can order a drink there but cannot buy a sealed bottle to carry home. On Thanksgiving, those on-premises licensees can serve alcohol with no hour restriction; on Christmas Day and Memorial Day, they can serve starting at noon (with slightly different early-morning cutoffs in Suffolk County).1General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts Code Part I, Title XX, Chapter 138, Section 33
Massachusetts-licensed farm wineries, breweries, and craft distilleries operate under separate licenses (Sections 19B, 19C, and 19E) and can sell their own products by the bottle for off-premises consumption on Sundays and legal holidays.1General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts Code Part I, Title XX, Chapter 138, Section 33 They can only sell what they make themselves, so a brewery taproom cannot stock wine or liquor. If a local brewery chooses to open on Thanksgiving or Christmas, however, it can legally sell you cans or bottles of its own beer to take home.
2026 Dates to Remember
- Monday, May 25 (Memorial Day): package stores open at noon.
- Thursday, November 26 (Thanksgiving): package stores closed all day.
- Friday, December 25 (Christmas): package stores closed all day.
- Election days: package stores closed during polling hours unless your city or town has waived the restriction.
On every other legal holiday in 2026, Massachusetts liquor stores keep their normal permitted hours.1General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts Code Part I, Title XX, Chapter 138, Section 33