Chinese New Year Celebrations 2025: 15-day Chinese New Year Day-by-Day Celebration

Chinese New Year or Lunar New Year celebration usually lasts 15 days, from New Year's Eve to the 15th day of the Chinese New Year—the Lantern Festival. In 2025, the celebration starts on Jan. 28th and ends on Feb. 12th.

Pre-Chinese New Year Celebrations (Jan. 7, 2025, to Jan. 28, 2025)

Chinese New Year is the most important traditional festival in China. People usually prepare for it early before New Year’s Eve.

Little New Year (January 22nd-January 23rd, 2025)-小年夜

The Little New Year of 2025 is January 22nd in the north and January 23rd in the south. This is the mark of celebrations for the Spring Festival. People clean their houses, hoping to sweep away all the bad things.

They also bow to the Kitchen God because there's a story that the Kitchen God will tell the Jade Emperor about what happened in the past year. So, everyone wants the Kitchen God to say nice things, which can bring good luck and blessings.

The 25th to the 27th day of the 12th lunar month (January 24th to 26th, 2025)-腊月二十五到腊月二十七

People go to supermarkets to buy many Chinese New Year snacks and desserts, like candies, cookies, melon seeds, and fruits. They also buy ingredients for the New Year's Eve dinner, such as chicken, pork, celery, and beer.

To celebrate the New Year, people buy fireworks and firecrackers, because they make loud noises and can scare away bad things. But, they wait until New Year's Eve and the first day of the New Year to set them off at night.

The 28th day of the 12th lunar month (January 27, 2025)-腊月二十八

People start preparing pasta dishes. In the north, they make dumplings, while in the south, they cook Tangyuan.

Chinese New Year's Eve (Jan. 28, 2025): 6 Traditions and Activities-除夕

As the last day of the lunar year, Chinese New Year's Eve (除夕 chú xī) is the day before Chinese New Year. It is a grand reunion time for the whole Chinese family. People will participate in many activities to celebrate the coming new year.

1. Putting Up New Year Decorations

People believe that auspicious decorations can drive away evil spirits and bring good luck.  On Chinese New Year’s Eve, Chinese people will hang red lanterns in front of their houses, put Chinese New Year Couplets on doors, and put flowers with lucky symbols inside their houses.

During the Spring Festival, people often hang up lanterns, which are also called colorful lights. They decorate in front of the house and on the trees along the streets. These lanterns, symbols of health and safety, add a happy atmosphere to the festival.

At the same time, as another important custom, Spring Festival couplets are changed every year, meaning saying goodbye to the old and welcoming the new. The Spring Festival couplets are usually made of a piece of red paper with black words. Traditionally, they are written with brushes, but nowadays they are mostly printed by machines.

Find more New Year lucky things on Chinese New Year Decoration.

2. Worshiping Ancestors

Chinese people believe their ancestors underground also need to have a great time for the New Year. Their ancestors need to eat before themselves.

To worship ancestors, Usually, before the family reunion dinner, people offer sacrifices of meat, wine, fruit, and incense sticks that are placed on their ancestors' shrines or graves.

3. Having a Reunion Dinner with Family

Despite the many regional differences in culture and customs, most of China has similar beliefs concerning Chinese New Year dishes. They represent what should come in the next year: fish, dumplings, rice cakes, and fruits – all represent wealth and prosperity.

Rice cakes in particular can represent a higher position or status. Sweet Rice Balls are eaten for family togetherness, and noodles are eaten for longevity.

Chinese New Year Cuisine on the dinner tables in the north and south are different. In the north, dumplings are an important part of the New Year's Eve dinner. There is a fun custom: people hide a coin in one of the dumplings. The person who eats this special dumpling will have lots of good luck and money in the new year.

But in the south, people often eat Tangyuan during the New Year's Eve dinner. Tangyuan means that the family members are together and happy.

4. Giving Red Envelopes

People will give red envelopes (红包 hóng bāo), full of lucky money to their children, wishing them health, growth, and happiness in the coming year.

The traditional custom of giving red packets usually involves parents giving to their children, or elders presenting to the younger generation, to convey the meaning of blessings and good luck.

In recent years, the rise of WeChat red envelopes has revolutionized the way red envelopes are given. Although the method has changed, the significance of conveying good wishes and luck contained within remains unchanged.

6. Staying Up Late

Staying up late or all night on Chinese New Year's Eve is called "守岁 (shǒu suì)" in Chinese. After the grand reunion dinner, all family members will sit together, chatting, playing cards or mahjong, and watch the Spring Festival gala to welcome the arrival of the new year.

Some people will go to squares or even mountain-top temples to hear bells ringing at the end of the old year or the beginning of the new year.

Chinese New Year's Day (Jan. 29, 2025) Celebrations-正月初一

New Year's Day is the most important day of the year. To have a happy and prosperous new year, Chinese people will do the luckiest things on this day. 

1. Setting Off Firecrackers and Fireworks

Chinese people believe that fire and loudness can dispel bad luck, and scare away evil spirits.

On the morning of the first day of the lunar new year, people will set off firecrackers once they open the door in the early morning of New Year's Day. The earlier, the better.

Setting off fireworks is to bring good luck and fortune into the family, it is called "开财门" kāi cái mén (open the door of fortune).

2. Putting on New Clothes

People will put on new clothes on New Year's Day. Mostly, the color for the new clothes is red as red is thought to be the luckiest color in Chinese culture. Wearing red clothes is believed to bring good fortune.

Read Chinese New Year Clothes to know more clothes styles for the new year.

3. Greeting Each Other Happy New Year

Each word you say on New Year's Day matters. If you don't know what to say, you can wish a Happy New Year, which is the most popular New Year saying. It is customary for the younger generations to visit the older generations on this day and wish them good health.

Learn How to Say Happy New Year in Chinese and Chinese New Year Greetings to convey your blessing.

4. Watching Lion Dance and Dragon Dance Performance

The lion and dragon symbolize power in Chinese culture. People believe that performing the lion dance and dragon dance can scare away evil spirits and bring good fortune.

The 2nd Day: (Jan. 30, 2025): Welcoming Sons-in-Law-正月初二

This is the day for welcoming sons-in-law or visiting the wife's family. On this day, married daughters visit their parents' homes with their husbands. Specific traditions vary from place to place in China, but usually, they bring gifts and red envelopes for the children in their family's home. Daughters and sons-in-law will typically have lunch in their parents' homes.

The 3rd Day: (Jan. 31, 2025): Staying at Home-正月初三

In the old days, the third day of Chinese New Year was considered an ominous day, so people usually didn't go out. There were many traditional taboos, such as cleaning the house, making a fire, having arguments, drawing water, visiting others, and so on.

With the progress of time, however, fewer and fewer people believe in such superstitions. More and more people just take this day as a normal holiday to have fun with their families.

Learn more traditional taboos on the new year on Chinese New Year Superstitions.

The 4th Day:  (Feb. 1, 2025): Welcoming the Kitchen Gods-正月初四

The fourth day, on the other hand, is considered an auspicious day: a day to welcome the Kitchen God as he returns from heaven to earth.

Families burn incense and light candles to welcome the gods. Families also prepare fruits, alcohol, fish, chicken, and pork for their meals on this day.

The 5th Day: (Feb. 2, 2025): Welcoming the God of Wealth-正月初五

This day is believed to be the birthday of the God of Fortune. People will welcome the Fortune God to their houses.

People will celebrate with a large banquet. They will also keep their doors or windows open as a welcoming gesture towards the God of Fortune, setting firecrackers to attract the attention of the God of Fortune, thus ensuring his favor and good fortune for themselves and their families year ahead.

The 6th Day (Feb. 3, 2025): Driving Away the Ghost of Poverty-正月初六

On the sixth day, people carry out a series of celebrations to bid farewell to the God of Poverty and welcome good luck and wealth for the new year. Firstly, everyone will do a thorough cleaning, making their homes spotless. They also set off firecrackers and send away paper figures, all aimed at driving away poverty and bad luck, hoping for a smoother and happier new year.

Apart from the rituals to see off the God of Poverty, the sixth day is also a good day for shops to reopen. Business owners will prepare early, celebrating with firecrackers to fill their shops with lively and festive atmospheres. At the same time, they will put up couplets with auspicious words to pray for a thriving business and abundant wealth.

The 7th Day (Feb. 4, 2025): Eating Qibao Porridge-正月初七

According to legend, the mother goddess Nu Wa created human beings on the seventh day, so the seventh day of the Chinese New Year is commonly referred to as "rén rì", the day human beings were created.

People in some regions eat a thick soup with seven kinds of vegetables on this day to ward off misfortune and disease.

In some rural places in east China, people make torches with straw, light them, and send them out of the village, to express their wish that there will be no fire-related disasters in the year ahead.

The 8th Day (Feb. 5, 2025): Celebrating the Birthday of Millet-正月初八

Millet is an important crop in ancient China. According to folk sayings, if the weather on this day is bright and clear, there will be a good harvest; otherwise, the year will suffer a poor harvest.

Some people release animals such as fish and birds to show respect for nature. They also hope to pray by releasing animals, wishing for a good crop harvest and the safety of their family members and domestic animals in the new year.

After a 7-day celebration for the Chinese New Year, most people return to work on the eighth day. Bosses will give staff red envelopes (hongbao in Mandarin or lai see in Cantonese), meaning the team can make profits.

Day 9 (Feb. 6, 2025): Celebrating the Birthday of the Jade Emperor-正月初九

The ninth day is the birthday of the Jade Emperor (the Supreme Deity of Taoism). According to Taoist legend, all the deities of heaven and earth celebrate this day, and there are grand ceremonies in Taoist temples.

Activities include:

• Setting off firecrackers continuously from midnight on the eighth day of Chinese New Year to 4:00 AM on the 9th day.
• Offering sacrifices to the Jade Emperor, before which the whole family will first take a shower as a sign of respect to the Emperor.

Day 10 (Feb. 7, 2025): Celebrating the Birthday of the God of Stone-正月初十

The tenth day is the birthday of the god of stone. On this day, it is forbidden to move any stone, including stone rollers, stone mills, and stone mortars.

In addition, it is also forbidden to cut into mountain rocks or to build a house with rocks, or bad things will happen to their crops. On this day, families burn incense and candles to honor stone and offer pancakes to the god of stone.

Day 11 (Feb. 8, 2025): Fathers-in-Law Entertaining Sons-in-Law-正月十一

The eleventh day is for fathers-in-law to entertain their sons-in-law. There is a lot of food left over from celebrating the birthday of the Jade Emperor, so the leftover food is eaten on this day.

People in some regions hold the dragon dance on this day, and the dance is always accompanied by firecrackers.

Day 12-14 (Feb. 9-11, 2025): Preparing for the Lantern Festival-正月十二到正月十四

On the twelfth day, everyone is busy preparing lanterns and setting up lantern sheds for the upcoming lantern viewing event.

On the thirteenth day, people light a lamp under the kitchen stove to make sure everything goes smoothly when lighting the lanterns on the Lantern Festival.

On the fourteenth day, people go to the market to buy lanterns, and you can see dragon and lion dance rehearsals on the streets.

Day 15 (Feb. 12, 2025): Lantern Festival-元宵节

The 15th day of the Chinese New Year is the Lantern Festival (元宵节 yuán xiāo jié). It traditionally marks the end of the Chinese New Year celebration.

On this day, popular activities include lighting up lanterns, guessing lantern riddles, eating yuan xiao (a kind of rice ball), and enjoying time with families or lovers.

In a tradition dating back to the Song dynasty, people would write poem riddles on lanterns, and those who could solve them would sometimes receive prizes from the owners of the lanterns.

Lantern Festival is not only a family reunion time but also a special time when unmarried young men and women can meet. People eat rice balls with fillings to celebrate and usher in a prosperous and lucky new year.

Chinese New Year Celebration Around the World

Besides China, countries in Southeast Asia also celebrate the Chinese New Year in their ways. People in Singapore give oranges to each other, and in the Philippines, they scatter coins around their houses. But the Spring Festival holidays in these countries are 1 to 3 days.

In Western and European countries, there are also New Year celebrations in Chinatown. The biggest event is the parade.

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