Hop over the Channel to France, and say goodbye to your efficient Sunday shop. Most hypermarchés (the big ones) are closed all day. You can find smaller supermarkets open in tourist zones or city centers, but they often close by 1 p.m. It’s as if the entire country collectively yawns and says, "Non, merci, we have croissants and a three-hour lunch." The French have a law that says workers must have a day off, and Sunday is usually it. You want milk? You’re buying it from the boulangerie, and it comes in a bag that you need to cut with scissors. Embrace the struggle.
Grocery Store Open Late Sunday at Bob Wright blog
Germany, land of efficiency and terrifyingly clean streets, is surprisingly strict about this. Shops are legally forbidden from opening on Sundays, with a few exceptions for bakeries, gas stations, and train stations. So if you forget to buy your bratwurst on Saturday, you’re either eating gas-station gummi bears or taking a very confusing detour to a main train station where a tiny Rewe sells everything from deodorant to dill pickles. It’s like a secret, impossibly bright safe room in a zombie movie. Pro tip: Germans call this Sonntagsruhe (Sunday rest), and they take it very seriously. Don’t even think about mowing your lawn.
The Weird Exceptions
Australia is a mixed bag of snakes. In New South Wales and Victoria, big supermarkets open at 9 or 10 a.m. and close at 7 p.m. But in South Australia, some shops don’t open until 11 a.m. Why? Because reasons. A friend of mine in Adelaide once tried to buy eggs at 10:30 a.m. on a Sunday and was met with a locked door and a single sign that read, "We’ll be back when we’re ready." It’s basically the wild west of grocery shopping.
Are Supermarkets Open Today? Morrisons Easter Sunday 2026 Opening
Don’t even get me started on Norway. Sundays are a ghost town. Unless you live in Oslo or Bergen, your options are essentially "wait until Monday." The only place open might be a 7-Eleven or a bensinstasjon (gas station) where you can buy a frozen pizza that costs the equivalent of a small mortgage. It builds character, I suppose. Or just a burning resentment for Lutefisk.
So, what time does your supermarket open on a Sunday? Check your local laws, check your local listings, and never assume anything. That 24-hour Tesco you rely on might be a locked fortress until 10:03 a.m., because the manager is still finishing his tea. Or, if you’re in Switzerland, it might be closed entirely because the cows are still sleeping. The golden rule is this: If you need milk desperately on a Sunday morning, you are not a shopper. You are a detective. Use Google. Call ahead. And if all else fails, go make peace with those pickles in your fridge. They’re not going anywhere.
