Spring Festival

The Year of the Snake, symbolized by the Chinese New Year 2025, is a year of wisdom, elegance and mystery, which will be of special cultural significance as it will be the first Chinese New Year celebration in the history of China to be listed as an Intangible Cultural Heritage. According to the traditional Chinese Zodiac, the Year of the Snake begins on February 17, 2025 and ends on February 5, 2026, a period of time during which the symbolism of the snake profoundly influences the way the holiday is celebrated and its spiritual atmosphere. The symbolic attributes of the snake, such as caution, deliberation and foresight, remind people to focus more on planning and wise decision-making in the new year.

New Year's Eve and New Year's Dinner:

On the eve of New Year's Eve, families put up New Year's couplets on their doorsteps. The content of these couplets is usually to wish family members happiness, well-being, and success in business, and common auspicious phrases include “Prosperity”, “Good fortune”, and “Spring is in the air”. The New Year's Eve dinner is the most important meal of the Spring Festival, when families get together and share a sumptuous meal, symbolizing reunion and harmony. This New Year's Eve dinner is not only a culinary treat, but also a time for family bonding and hope for the new year.

After the New Year's Eve dinner, many families sit down to watch the Spring Festival Gala, an indispensable program during the Chinese New Year's Eve, with a wide variety of performances, including songs, dances, comedies, sketches, and magic tricks, making it an important entertainment for family reunions. At the same time, fireworks and firecrackers are set off to symbolize the exorcism of evil spirits and the welcoming of the New Year.

New Year's greeting and red envelopes on the first day of the Lunar New Year:

On the morning of the first day of the Lunar New Year (i.e. January 29th), families wake up early to prepare to pay New Year's greetings to their elders. The younger generation will kowtow to their elders and wish them good health and success. The elders then give the children red envelopes containing New Year's money, a symbol of good luck and blessings, which signifies their good wishes and blessings for the children.

Visit the door to pay New Year's greetings and to socialize:

Paying New Year's visits is an important activity during the first few days of the Spring Festival, especially on the first and second days of the Lunar New Year. People will put on new clothes, carry gifts, and go from house to house to pay New Year's call to relatives and friends, sending their blessings. In this way, not only can they enhance the relationship between relatives and friends, but also pass on each other's culture and friendship. In some regions, there are specific traditional foods, customs and performances to add to the festive atmosphere.

Local specialties are celebrated:

Although the basic form of celebration of the Spring Festival is national, local characteristics of each region also give the festival a colorful look. For example, in some parts of the South, temple fairs are held, and people participate in traditional folk art activities such as dragon and lion dances and stilt walking; in the North, eating dumplings on New Year's Eve has become almost a standard practice, signifying “attracting wealth and treasures”; and in some places there is a tradition of setting off fireworks as a sign of good wishes for the year ahead.