Chinese New Year in China: A 2027 Travel Guide
Chinese New Year in China falls on Saturday, February 6, 2027, the first day of the Year of the Goat, and the celebrations run until the Lantern Festival on February 20. It is the best time to see the country's biggest festival up close and one of the hardest times to travel around it, because the Spring Festival travel rush fills trains for about 40 days.
Chinese New Year 2027 dates
The festival runs from New Year's Eve to the Lantern Festival on the 15th day. The first day always falls on the new moon between January 21 and February 20, which is why the date moves every year.
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| Around Friday, January 22, 2027 | The Chunyun travel rush begins, about 15 days before New Year's Day |
| Friday, February 5, 2027 | New Year's Eve and the family reunion dinner |
| Saturday, February 6, 2027 | Chinese New Year's Day, start of the Year of the Goat |
| Saturday, February 20, 2027 | Lantern Festival, the last day of the celebrations |
| Early March 2027 | The roughly 40-day travel rush winds down |
China's State Council sets the official public holiday dates each year. The 2027 schedule had not been announced as of October 2026, so check it before you book intercity trains.
Is Chinese New Year a good time to visit China?
Yes, if you want to see the festival itself and can book transport early. Red paper-cuts and couplets go up on doors, and lanterns, temple fairs and lion and dragon dances fill the streets. The cost is crowds: trains and flights are hard to book, and popular sights are packed with domestic travelers.
The crowds have a simple cause. According to Wikipedia, Spring Festival is one of only two week-long public holidays in China, so many people travel for pleasure and tourism reaches record levels.
Chunyun: the Spring Festival travel rush
Chunyun usually begins 15 days before New Year's Day and lasts around 40 days. Wikipedia calls it the largest annual human migration in the world, and for 2026 the period was forecast to see 539 million passenger trips.
Photo: 20260209 Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station - Interior 02 by Windmemories, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons, cropped.
The rush comes in waves:
- Before New Year's Eve: people who work or study away from home travel back for the reunion dinner.
- Second and third days: a second wave travels to visit the wives' hometowns.
- End of the holiday: everyone heads back to work and school.
Rail takes the heaviest load, and air travel less so. Nearly every train in China now requires a ticket linked to the passenger's ID, and station staff check it before boarding. Carry the ID you booked with on every travel day.
What you will see over the 15 days
Each stage of the festival has its own customs:
- Before New Year's Eve: families clean the house to sweep away bad luck, then hang red paper-cuts and couplets around doors and windows.
- New Year's Eve: the reunion dinner. A China travel guide notes that northern families like dumplings, while families in the south favor glutinous rice cakes.
- New Year's Day onward: relatives visit each other and give money in red envelopes. The north has temple fairs, ice sculpture shows and skiing; the south has dragon and lion dances, flower markets and lantern shows.
- Lantern Festival (day 15): red lanterns go up, and people eat tangyuan or yuanxiao, glutinous rice balls usually filled with sweet red bean, sesame or peanut paste.
Firecrackers are part of the noise, but rules vary by place. The same guide says big cities generally allow them only in designated areas, so check local restrictions before you buy any.
Where to see it in Beijing and Shanghai
In Beijing, the Temple of Earth in Ditan Park has held traditional temple fairs over the lunar new year since the 1980s, according to Wikipedia. During the festival, thousands of red lanterns hang from the trees in the park.
Photo: 豫园灯会04039 by Augusthaiho, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons, cropped.
In Shanghai, the bazaar around Yu Garden puts up large lantern installations around Chinese New Year and the Lantern Festival, and it gets packed. The bazaar is normally free; a Shanghai travel guide lists an entry fee of CNY 50–80 during those festivals, so check the 2027 event announcement for the current price. Yu Garden itself sets special Spring Festival opening hours. Our Yu Garden guide has the regular hours and tickets.
If you want to see more than one city over the holiday, our China tour packages cover multi-day journeys across the country.
How to plan a Spring Festival trip
A few rules make the holiday much easier:
- Book intercity trains and flights as early as you can, using the ID you will travel with.
- Avoid travel days just before New Year's Eve and near the end of the public holiday, when the two big waves move.
- Pick one or two cities and stay put over the first days of the New Year.
- Make any intercity move in the middle of the 15 days, after the second-day and third-day family visits.
- Check special holiday hours for the sights you want, such as Yu Garden.
That way you catch the temple fairs and the Lantern Festival without spending the holiday in stations.
FAQ
When is Chinese New Year 2027?
Saturday, February 6, 2027. The celebrations end with the Lantern Festival on Saturday, February 20.
Should you visit China during Chinese New Year?
Yes, if you want to see the festival and can book transport early. Expect crowds at major sights and sold-out trains around the start and end of the holiday.
How long does Chinese New Year last?
The festival lasts 15 days, from New Year's Day to the Lantern Festival. The Chunyun travel rush around it lasts about 40 days.
What animal year is 2027?
2027 is the Year of the Goat. It begins on February 6, 2027.
We run private tours in Shanghai, Beijing, Suzhou and Hangzhou, plus multi-day journeys across China. If you are thinking about a Spring Festival trip, send us your dates through our customize your journey page.
Cover photo: Temple of Earth temple fair 1 by storyvillegirl, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons, cropped.
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