Hong Kong Orientation Guide

Chinese Festivals

Festivals and Holidays

There are 17 designated public holidays in Hong Kong each year. In addition to Christmas, Boxing Day,GoodFridayandEaster,HongKong celebratesBuddha’sbirthdayandothertraditional Chinese festivals.

Spring Festival (Chinese New Year)

Themost important of theChinese Festivals, and is celebrated on the first day of the first moon of the traditional lunarcalendar,usually late JanuaryorearlyFebruarydepending on theLunar Calendar of that particular year. Celebrating the new Chinese New Year also marks the start of the plowing and sowing season. During this 3-day holiday most of the Chinese population spend time with their families—themost important gathering includes a huge family feast on the eve of the New Year. Businesses are closed for 3-days and upwards of a week depending on the industry. It is also a period of great decoration, with homes, buildings and shops all well decorated with wishes of good luck. It happens to be the noisiest of all holidays,with amassive fireworks show over VictoriaHarbour on the1stday of theNewYear. As themajority of theChinesepopulation tendtotravelduringthisperiod,itiswisetobookholidaysinadvance.Schoolsareusuallyclosed for aweek. China National Day is October 1st - established by the Government in 1949 to celebrate the foundingofthePeople’sRepublicofChina.Thiskicksoff“GoldenWeek”inChina -October 1 to October 7, but is of much less significance in Hong Kong. Similar to the Chinese New Year holiday themajority of themainlandChinese population tends to travel during this period,so it iswise to book holidays in advance if you have business travel over this period. Festivals in China are elaborate and vibrant affairs. Take part in a decorated dragon boat racing during the DuanWu festival, watch impressive firework displays at Chinese New Year, or sample various moon cakes during theMidAutumn Festival - Chinese festivals are a time to bewith families and friends. National Day

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