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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.
National Day
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.