Written by Catherine |
TraditionalĀ Chinese festivals are treasures of the long history and culture of the Chinese nation, with diverse forms and rich content. Developed from ancient times and passed down to the present day, it has accumulated profound connotations of Chinese culture. Any traditional festival is not simply a form or ceremony. The customs and legends of these Chinese festivals shape a common historical memory of a nation, serving as a bond to unite and continue tradition.
The major traditionalĀ Chinese festivals include: Spring Festival, ChineseĀ Lantern Festival, Tomb-Sweeping Day, DragonĀ Boat Festival, Qixi Festival, Zhongyuan Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, Double Ninth Festival, etc. Among them, Spring Festival, Tomb-Sweeping Day, DragonĀ Boat Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival are called the four traditional Chinese festivals.Ā Welcome to startĀ your China toursĀ to experience the charm of traditionalĀ Chinese festivals!Ā These festivals will introduce you to the real life in China.ā
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- Chinese New Year (Spring Festival)
- Lantern Festival
- Tomb-Sweeping Day (Qingming Festival)
- Dragon Boat Festival
- Qixi Festival (Double Seventh Festival)
- Zhongyuan Festival (Ghost Festival)
- Mid-Autumn Festival
- Double Ninth Festival
- Winter Solstice (Dongzhi) Festival
- Chinese Ethnic Minority Festivals
- Other Important Holidays in China
- Read More about Chinese Festivals
Chinese New Year (Spring Festival)
The Spring Festival, also known as the Chinese New YearĀ or Lunar New Year, is the most grand and lively traditional Chinese festival in folk culture. It originated from the worship of gods and ancestors at yearās end and start duringĀ Yin-Shang period. In a broad sense,Ā Spring Festival lastsĀ from the first day of the first lunar monthĀ to the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.
The Spring Festival is the first Chinese lunar festival of the year. It is celebrated with the themes ofĀ removing the old and greeting the new, worshiping gods and ancestors, praying for blessings, etc. During Spring Festival, every household puts up Spring couplets, New Year pictures, and decorates their rooms with red things. The night before the Spring Festival is called āNew Yearās Eveā, which is an important time for family reunion. The whole family gathers together and eats a sumptuous āNew Yearās Eve dinnerā; Many people stay up all night, known as āstaying up lateā. The next day, everyone began to visit their relativesā homes to pay New Yearās greetings and wish each other all the best in the new year.
During Chinese New YearĀ Festival, every household prepares delicious food such as dumplings and rice cakes, and also sets off firecrackers. Children willĀ receive New Yearās lucky money and red envelopes. The traditional customs of Spring FestivalĀ also include shopping, sweeping dust, offering sacrifices, lion dance, etc.
Get to our Chinese New Year calendar page to see the exact dates for the future years.
Related reading:
- Chinese New Year vs Lunar New Year: Key Differences and Traditions
- Chinese New Year Celebrations 2026 ā A Day by Day Guide
Lantern Festival
TheĀ 15th day of the first lunar monthĀ is the Chinese Lantern Festival, also known as Yuanxiao Festival orĀ Shangyuan Festival. This is the first traditional Chinese festival after the Spring Festival. The first lunar month is the āyuanāĀ month, and ChineseĀ ancients called the night āxiaoā, so the 15th day of the first lunar month is called Yuanxiao Festival. ItĀ is the night of the first full moon of the year. People celebrate this asĀ a continuation of celebrating the Chinese New Year.
According to Chinese folk tradition, it is customary to eat Yuanxiao (Tangyuan)Ā and watch lanternsĀ during the Lantern Festival. Yuanxiao takes glutinous rice flour as its skin, and is filled with black sesame, peanut, red bean and other fillings. It is round, thusĀ a symbol of āreunionā. Watching lanterns on Yuanxiao Festival started in the first century AD, and it is still popular all over China inĀ modern times. On the night of Lantern Festival, manyĀ famous Chinese cities,Ā such as Beijing, Xian, Shanghai, Chengdu, hold lantern shows, displaying various colored lanterns with novel shapes, as well as the fun intelligence activity of guessingĀ lantern riddles.Ā In rural areas, cultural and entertainment activities are held, such as setting off fireworks, walking on stilts, playing dragon lanterns, and dancing yangko.Ā Embark on your Chinese Festival toursĀ to feel the vitality of China.
Tomb-Sweeping Day (Qingming Festival)
Qingming is one of the twenty-four solar terms in China, usually around April 5th in the Gregorian calendar. With the arrival of Qingming, the temperature rises and the rainfall increases, making it a great season for spring plowing and planting. It can be seen that this solar term is closely related to agricultural production. Qingming Festival is a traditional Chinese festival and also the most important sacrificial festival.
The origin of Qingming Festival is said to have originated from the ancient ritual of ātomb sacrificeāĀ for emperors. Later, people also followed suit and worshiped ancestors and swept tombsĀ on this day. Tomb sweeping, commonly known as going to the grave, is an activity of worshiping the deceased. People will bring food and drinks to worship their ancestors. At the same time, they will also eat traditional food such as Qingming Congee and Qingtuan.
Besides, during the Tomb-Sweeping Day, spring returns to the earth, and the natural world presents a vibrant scene everywhere. People often go to the outskirts together for outings, flying kites, and enjoying the spring scenery, so Chinese Qingming Festival is sometimes called the āSpring Outing Festivalā. The Chinese nation has had the custom of going on a Qingming outing since ancient times. There are also customs of swinging and cuju (kickball) during Qingming Festival.
Dragon Boat Festival
The fifth day of the fifth lunar monthĀ is the traditional Chinese festival – Dragon Boat Festival, which is also called the Duanwu Festival or Duanyang Festival because it is the time with the most abundant yang qi. It is generally believed that it was created to commemorate the great patriotic poet Qu Yuan in ancient China. Legend has it that Qu Yuan, a poet of Chu State during the Warring States Period, committed suicide by jumping into the Miluo River on the fifth day of fifth lunar month. Thus, later generations took the Dragon Boat Festival as a Chinese festival to commemorate Qu Yuan.
DuringĀ ChineseĀ Dragon Boat Festival (Double-Fifth Festival), people have the custom of wearing scent sachets, eating Zongzi, and racing Dragon Boat. The scent sachet represents Qu Yuanās moral integrity, which will last forever. Zongzi was originally used to prevent fish from eating Qu Yuanās body, and later became a festival foodĀ in China. Zongzi, mainly made of glutinous rice and stuffing, is wrapped with Ruo leaves or Phrynium leaves, with various shapes and tastes. Rowing dragon boat means going to rescue Qu Yuan. This traditional Chinese festival also has the custom of tying wrists with five-colored threads and hanging wormwood.
Related Reading: Dragon Boat Festival Food
Qixi Festival (Double Seventh Festival)
The seventh night of the seventh lunar month, called āQixiā, is the legendary day on which the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl meet each other across the Milky WayĀ on the magpie bridge once aĀ year. In thisĀ evening, people place melons and fruits in the courtyard, and girls tie colorful threads and thread seven-hole needles. The one who finishesĀ it first is cleverĀ (å·§). Qixi FestivalĀ (Qiqiao Festival)Ā is also known as the āGirlsāĀ DayāĀ because it is mostly attended by girls. People will eat delicious foodĀ such as Qiao Fruit, Qiao Rice, and QiaoĀ Egg.
This day is the most romantic traditional Chinese festival, and it was also the day that girls valued the most in the past. Countless men and women in love will pray to the Weaver Girl for their happy marriage in the night of Qixi. Therefore, Qixi Festival is alsoĀ called Chinese Valentineās DayĀ in modern times.
Learn more about Chinese festivalsĀ on fantasticĀ China culture tours.
Zhongyuan Festival (Ghost Festival)
Zhongyuan Festival fallsĀ on the 15th day of the seventh lunar month, commonly known as āMid-Julyā. It is the legendaryĀ birthday of the Earth GodĀ (å°å®), so it is also known as the Hungry Ghost Festival. On this day, Buddhists set up the Ullambana, offer foodĀ to monks, hold chanting ceremonies, as well as religious activities such as floatingĀ river lanterns.
Zhongyuan Festival originated from the Taoism after the Eastern Han Dynasty. Taoism has the concept of āThree Yuanā, which states that the Earth GodĀ can forgive sins. In the Tang Dynasty when the rulers worshiped Taoism, Taoismās Zhongyuan Festival began to flourish, and has continued to this day.
In the past, people not only offered sacrificeĀ to their ancestors, but also prepared some dishes, wine, rice, gold and silver paperĀ clothing to worship ghosts and gods at the crossroads on the night of Zhongyuan Festival. In this evening, people floatĀ river lanterns, burn paper money to worship their ancestors, and also eatĀ duck meat and bianshi (wontons)Ā to suppress the fright.
The Zhongyuan Festival (Hungry Ghost Festival), along with the Chinese New Yearās Eve, Qingming Festival and Double Ninth Festival, has become theĀ four major Chinese festivals of ancestor worship.
Mid-Autumn Festival
ChineseĀ Mid-Autumn FestivalĀ on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month is also called āReunion Festivalā. The moon on this nightĀ is rounder and brighter than the full moons in other months, so Mid-Autumn Festival is also called Moon Festival, Moon Worship Festival, etc. This is a Chinese festival celebrating harvest and reunion. Mid-Autumn Festival originated from the ritual system of ancient emperors offering sacrifices to the moon in autumn. Since the Wei, Jin, Tang, and Song dynasties, it has gradually evolved into the custom of admiring the moon.
The term āMid-AutumnāĀ first appeared in the book āRites of Zhouā, and it was not until the Tang Dynasty that it truly became a national festival. It is said that the formation of this majorĀ tradition Chinese festival is related to the story of āEmperor Ming of TangāsĀ Moon Journeyā. In ancient times, people would offer refined cakes and pastries to the Moon God during the Mid-Autumn Festival; After the sacrifice, the whole family eats them, indicating a reunion and gathering as a family. The custom of eating mooncakesĀ on Mid-Autumn Festival has been passed down to this day.
āFurther reading: Top 10 Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival Foods
Double Ninth Festival
The Double Ninth Festival, which falls on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month, was a tradition Chinese festival that emerged after the Wei and Jin dynasties. Because in the book āI Chingā, ānineāĀ is defined as aĀ yang number, and on the ninth day of the ninth monthĀ (lunar), the two nines meet, hence it is called Chung Yeung or Double Ninth. ChineseĀ ancients believed it to be a auspicious day and began celebrating this festival from very early on.
Traditional customs ofĀ the Double Ninth FestivalĀ include:
- Climbing a mountain. At this time, the autumn sky is cool and the scenery is pleasant, which is a good season for travel. It can cultivate taste and be beneficial to health.
- Drinking and enjoying chrysanthemums. The ninth lunar month is the time when chrysanthemums are in full bloom. Admiring variousautumn chrysanthemums and drinking a few cups of chrysanthemum wine are also the joys of Double Ninth Festival.
- EatingChongyang cake. People make tender and delicious rice cakes from grains, which are called Chongyang cakes, and the word ācakeā(ē³)Ā sounds similar to āhighā(é«), which means upĀ step by step.
- Carryingout activities to respect the elderly, and the tradition of respecting the elderly on Double Ninth Festival has been ongoing since ancient times.
Winter Solstice (Dongzhi) Festival
TheĀ Winter Solstice FestivalĀ (å¬č³), normally celebratedĀ on December 21st or 22nd, marks the yearās shortest day and longest night in the Northern Hemisphere. It originally rooted in ancient farming traditions, symbolizingĀ the return of light and harmony with natureās cycles. On this day, families gather to honor ancestors, which reflectsĀ Confucian values of filial piety.
In terms of theĀ symbolic foods people share on this day, people in south would prefer tangyuan (sweet glutinous rice balls) while peopleĀ in the northĀ often eat dumplings. Both of them can represent unity and prosperity. As aĀ cultural anchor, Dongzhi connects generations through rituals that celebrate resilience and togetherness.
In addition to the above 9 important traditional Chinese festivals, there are also Dragon Head Raising Festival (2nd day of the 2nd lunar month), Shangsi Festival (3rd day of the 3rd lunar month), Laba Festival, Xiaonian, etc., all of which have their unique celebration methods and cultural connotations.
Related reading: Popular Winter Festivals and Events in China
Chinese Ethnic Minority Festivals
Each ethnic minority in China also has its own traditional festivals, such as:
- The Water Splashing Festival is the most solemn festival of the Dai ethnic group in Yunnan, falling inĀ mid-April in the Gregorian calendar, and usually lasts for 3 to 7 days. People splash water on each other, implying blessings and happiness.
- The Nadam Festival is a traditional festival of the Mongolian ethnic groupĀ with a long history. Usually held in Inner MongoliaĀ from the fourth to seventh day of the sixth lunar month every year, activities include wrestling, horse racing, archery, etc.
- Torch Festival (Huobajie): The Torch Festival (ē«ęč) is on the 24th day of the 6th lunar month (July/August). Itās usually celebrated by the Yi people living in Yunnan and Sichuan, known as a fiery homage to ancient agrarian traditions. On this day, villagers will together ignite massive amount of torches to symbolize the act of driving away evil spirits and blessing their crops, while dancers in vibrant costumes perform rhythmic leaps around bonfires.
- Knife-Pole Festival (Daodaofestival): The Knife-Pole Festival (åęč) is held on the 2nd day of the 2nd lunar month (March) by the Lisu people of Yunnan. They celebrate it bravery through daring feats. Performers will clad in silver jewelry, walking barefoot on smoldering charcoal or scale greased bamboo poles. The crowd will then cheer for their marvelous skill.
Related reading: Top Ethnic Festivals in Yunnan
Other Important Holidays in China
While traditional festivals remain central to Chinese culture, modern China also has important national holidays that celebrate its societal values and contemporary lifestyle. For example, Labor DayĀ (May 1st), which is one of the most important. It is marked by a short break with a 5-day public holiday, during which people enjoy leisure trips and relax themselves.
National DayĀ (October 1st) is a festival that all the Chinese people would expect. ToĀ commemorates the founding of the Peopleās Republic of China, unleashes a 7-day āGolden WeekāĀ of festivities. On October 1st, millions of people will gather at Beijingās Tiananmen Square at dawn for flag-raising ceremonies, while most cities will be dazzled with fireworks lighting up night skies. Some people would stay at home together with families, watching performances and shows on TV. However, some others would immediately go on a trip on the first day of the holiday. Domestic tourism peaks, with iconic destinations overcrowded.
