Opening hours for Christmas and New Year
Our opening hours change during the festive season from Monday 15 December 2025 to Sunday 25 January 2026.
Standard opening hours will resume from Monday 26 January 2026, see Opening Hours.
See below for details about keeping books/laptops for longer and which services will close.
Festive opening hours
| Date | Merchiston Library 24h zone | Merchiston Books (Zone 5) | Craiglockhart & Sighthill Libraries | Help desks open |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday 15 December to Friday 19 December | 24 hours (closes 9pm on 19/12) | 8am - 9pm | 8am - 9pm | 8.45am -4.45pm* |
| Saturday 20 December to Sunday 21 December | 9am - 5pm | 9am - 5pm | 9am - 5pm | Closed* |
| Monday 22 December | 8am - 9pm | 8am - 9pm | 8am - 9pm | 8.45am -4.45pm* |
| Tuesday 23 December | 9am - 5pm | 8am - 1.30pm | 8am - 1.30pm | Closed* |
| Wednesday 24 December | 9am - 5pm | Closed | Closed | Closed* |
| Thursday 25 December to Friday 26 December | Closed | Closed | Closed | Closed* |
| Saturday 27 December to Wednesday 31 December | 9am - 5pm | Closed | Closed | Closed* |
| Thursday 1 January to Friday 2 January | Closed | Closed | Closed | Closed* |
| Saturday 3 January to Sunday 4 January | 9am - 5pm | Closed | Closed | Closed* |
| Monday 5 January to Friday 9 January | 8am - 10pm | 8am - 9pm | 8am - 9pm | 8.45am - 4.45pm* |
| Saturday 10 January to Sunday 11 January | 8am - 10pm | 9am - 5pm | 9am - 5pm | Closed* |
| Monday 12 January to Friday 16 January | 8am - 10pm | 8am - 9pm | 8am - 9pm | 8.45am - 4.45pm* |
| Saturday 17 January to Sunday 18 January | 8am - 10pm | 9am - 5pm | 9am - 5pm | Closed* |
| Monday 19 January to Friday 23 January | 8am - 10pm | 8am - 9pm | 8am - 9pm | 8.45am - 4.45pm* |
| Saturday 24 January to Sunday 25 January | 8am - 10pm | 9am - 5pm | 9am - 5pm | Closed* |
Access to Merchiston library books is available during staffed hours only. If Merchiston Library Zones 1-4 only are open (the 24 hour zone), you will have access to study space, group study pods and computers.
There will be no access to book stock or staff help. Access is by swipe card only.
*Outwith these hours Library support will be provided by the NorMAN out of hours service.
You’ll find the opening hours of the Computer Suites over the festive period on the Computer Suite Festive Opening Hours page.
Keep items over Christmas with no fines or recalls
You can borrow any Library items from Monday 15 December 2025, and you won’t need to return them before Monday 26 January 2026 (unless requested by another user – from Monday 12 January). This includes laptop loans for students.
15 December – 26 January
- Any Library items due to be returned between these dates will now automatically be due Monday 26 January 2026.
- You can still Click and Collect books, but only those on the shelf, as we will not be recalling items from other users. Tuesday 16 December is the last date for requesting items from a different campus. Books can be collected from Merchiston campus during festive opening hours.
If you have had a Library book for over four months and would like to keep it over the festive period, please contact us and we will re-issue it for you.
Services update
- Students can still book Group Study Rooms at Merchiston over the Christmas break using Resource Booker.
- Postal Loans will not be available from the 15 December 2025 to 6 January 2026. Requests made from the 15 December 2025 will be processed after 6 January 2026.
- Inter Library Loans will not be processed over the festive season while the library is closed. Requests made from 19 December will be processed after 6 January 2026. Please note that any requests for physical books made after 1st December may not arrive until January.
- If you return items to Edinburgh Napier student accommodation, these will not be collected and will remain on your record until after the Christmas break. You will not be fined.
We're still here online
While our physical libraries are closed, you can continue to access ebooks, ejournals and databases using LibrarySearch.
When using LibrarySearch off-campus:
- Don’t forget to Sign In to LibrarySearch
- This means you will see all the subscription resources the Library pays for.
- Limit your search results to full-text online
- Enter your search words, and then use the filters on the right hand side under ‘Tweak my results’ to limit your search to show only ebooks and ejournals.
Useful Links:
- Subject Guides – Find subject-specific help
- A-Z List of Databases
- Finding Resources –Step-by-step guides to finding ebooks and ejournals.
Getting help
You can still contact us 24 hours a day for Library support during the festive break.
If you need any help, email library@napier.ac.uk or call 0131 455 3500.
While the University is closed, calls will be answered by our Out of Hours Service.
LibrarySearch