Festivals in China
A Kids Guide to Chinese Festivals
Do you want to know about traditional festivals in China? China is a huge country that has a beautiful culture and fascinating festivals and annual celebrations. Now let us introduce some very special Chinese festivals to you!
What you will learn about the following Chinese festivals:
Traditional Festivals in China
There are many traditional festivals in China. Most of them come from the ancient Chinese history. Here we share a unique article with insights from two Chinese students about the four main holidays: Spring Festival, Qing Ming Festival, Dragon Boat Festival and Mid-Autumn Day and their own family traditions. We added also short info paragraphs about other important festivals that are celebrated by the Chinese communities around the world.
Spring Festival | Chinese New Year
International Zigong Lantern Festival during the Spring FestivalWhat is the Spring Festival? Spring Festival is called Chūn Jié in China. In other countries, this festival is referred to as Chinese New Year or Lunar New Year. This is the biggest festival and celebrated all across in China. Families travel home for a big reunion dinner, houses and streets are decorated with red lanterns. In Sichuan province, the International Zigong Lantern Festival attracts over one million visitors each year! The Chinese families watch dragon or lion dances during the Spring Festival and parents or elders give red envelopes with money, called hongbao, to children for good luck. The main food is dumplings and rice cakes. Read more about the Chinese New Year traditions here.
When is the Spring festival? The Spring festival is held for 15 days starting on the start of the Lunar New Year, which is the first day of the first lunar month, usually in January or February depending on the lunar calendar.
"Spring Festival is the most important festival for Chinese people, just like Christmas is for many people in the West," explain two Chinese students Abby and Annie from Chengdu.
Chinese dumplingsThey write: "Setting off firecrackers is one of the customs in Spring Festival. Let me tell a story about it. A long time ago, a giant monster named Nian lived in China. He slept all year, but Nian woke up on the last day of the year.
Then he looked around for people - to eat them! Everyone was scared. Suddenly there it thundered and people found out that Nian was afraid of thunder. And people remembered that the noise of firecrackers sounds like thunder! From then on, people set off firecrackers to drive away the monster on the last day of the year. So the Spring Festival is also called "Guo Nian", which means in English "Overcome Nian".
Niangao - Traditional Chinese New Year cakeAll the family get together at Spring Festival. We dress up. Children can get money in red paper envelopes as New Year gifts when they wish each other "Happy New Year".
We eat dumplings and Niangao during Spring Festival. Niangao is a sweet and soft New Year rice cake. Because dumplings look like the money of ancient China, and Niangao means "higher and higher, one year after another", we think that eating dumplings and Niangao will bring us luck.
My favorite festival is the Spring Festival. I go to my hometown every Spring Festival. I play with my friends who I can’t see during the year. I can get many gifts and blessings. I am very happy in Spring Festival."
Lantern Festival | Yuánxiāo Jié
Lantern Festival celebrations in Shanghai - image by atiger/shutterstock.comWhat is the Lantern Festival? This festival marks the end of the Lunar New Year celebrations. People light colourful lanterns and solve riddles written on them. The traditional food for this festival is sweet glutinous rice balls or dumplings called yuanxiao.
When is the Lantern Festival? Lantern Festival is held on the last day of Lunar New Year celebrations, on the 15th day of the first lunar month.
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Dragon Boat Festival | Duānwǔ Jié
Festivals in China
What is the Dragon Boat Festival? This is an important festival especially in southern China. People race long dragon boats to remember the national poet Qu Yuan.
When is the Dragon Boat Festival? The Dragon Boat Festival takes place on the 5th day of the 5th lunar month and has a history dating back 2,000 years. In 2026, the festival will be held on 19 June.
Dragon Boat Festival"This festival lets us remember a patriotic poet who was called Qu Yuan. He wanted to help his country, but he couldn’t. Thus he was so sad that he jumped into a lake. Therefore today we have dragon boat races in the Dragon Boat Festival to remember Qu Yuan.
We eat Zongzi during the Dragon Boat Festival. Zongzi is made of sticky rice and wrapped in bamboo leaves. We also throw Zongzi into the river to avoid the fish eating Qu Yuan."
Chinese Zongzi parcels eaten during the Dragon Boat Festival"Let me tell you also the story about mugwort and calamus. These are important spices in the Chinese traditions. Once upon a time, the village caught fire in the Dragon Boat Festival. The gods put mugwort and calamus on good people’s houses. So the good people were safe, but the bad people died. From then on, we put mugwort and calamus around doors in the Dragon Boat Festival. This is a custom for good luck.
In my family, we bathe in mugwort water on Dragon Boat Festival. It can make us healthy. Mugwort water has special smell and I like to play in the bathtub and I imagine rowing a dragon boat. So I like this festival."
Qing Ming Festival - Festivals in China
What is the Qing Ming Festival? Qing Ming Festival is also named "Tomb Sweeping Day". This tradition began about 2,500 years ago and the festival usually takes place in the early April.
When is the Qing Ming Festival? Qing Ming Festival will be held on 5 April in 2026.
On this day, people go to the tombs of their family members and sweep the dust on it. People eat Qingtuan, which is made from rice and Aicao, a wild plant with a special scent. People still do as is tradition to celebrate this festival. During the festival, the most important to remember are the dead members of the family. I feel blue and cold thinking of this festival.
Mid-Autumn Festival | Zhōngqiū Jié
Festivals in China
What is the Mid-Autumn Festival? The Mid-Autumn Festival celebrates the full harvest moon. This is when the moon is the brightest and roundest at this time of year. In Chinese culture, the round moon is a symbol of family unity and togetherness. This is also why families gather for dinner, watch the moon together and enjoy eating mooncakes.
When is the mid-autumn festival? Mid-Autumn Day is an interesting festival that takes place in September or October. In 2026, it will be celebrated on 25 September.
Laterns at night in Midautumn Festival"There is an fascinating story about this festival. Many years ago, an immortal named Houyi killed nine sons of the God of Heaven. He was chased away by the God to the human world. His wife named Chang’e wanted them to live forever, so she asked Houyi to find a medicine. But she took all the medicine herself. Later she was ashamed of actions and hid in the Moon Palace in heaven.
Ancient people started a festival to honor this woman and hoped Houyi and Chang’e could come together again someday. They also used flour, sugar, nuts and eggs to make a desert named Yuebing for the festival.
Tradition in China: moon cakesYuebing is also called moon cake. People in China now also make different kinds of moon cakes every year. The festival’s meaning includes gathering family and friends and love for the family."
Qixi Festival | Qīxī Jié (七夕节)
What is the Qixi Festival? This festival is often called the Chinese Valentine's Day, as it is a celebration of romantic love when girls pray for love and happiness. Qixi is one of the oldest love festivals in the world and dates back over 2,000 years!
The Qixi Festival is based on famous love story, a romantic legend about two lovers who meet once a year.
Zhinü and Niulang and the magpiesQixi is based on a famous love story. It tells of Niulang, the Cowherd and Zhinü, the Weaver Girl, who was a fairy and the daughter of the Heavenly Queen. They fell in love and married, but the Heavenly Queen separated them by creating a wide river in the sky, the Milky Way! Once a year, on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, magpies form a magical bridge in the sky, so the two lovers can meet again.
When is the Qixi Festival? This traditional festival is held on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month. The festival is therefore often also referred to in China as the Double Seventh Festival. In 2026, the day is celebrated on 19 August.
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Winter Solstice or Dongzhi
Festival in China
What is the Dongzhi Festival? Dongzhi celebrates the winter solstice, which is the shortest day with the longest night of the year. After this day, the days slowly start getting longer again.
In the past, Dōngzhì was almost as important as Chinese New Year. Families would gather for reunion dinners and make offerings to ancestors. People eat "auspicious" foods for good luck including dumplings called jiaozi or sweet glutinous rice balls called tangyuan.
Typical Tangyuan eaten during the Dongzhi FestivalThis is a celebration of new beginnings and hope into a lucky future. The festival is one of the oldest festivals and has been celebrated for more than 2,000 years since the time of the Han dynasty. Dongzhi (冬至) means "the arrival of winter."
When is the Dongzhi Festival? The festival takes place around 21–23 December on winter solstice according to the solar calendar. This is one of the few major Chinese festivals that follows the solar calendar, not the lunar calendar.
More Customs and Traditions in China
China is a large country that has 56 ethnic groups as official information states. Each ethnic group has their own traditions. Some of the traditions we have already described above. But there are some other important traditions such as birthday celebrations.
Birthday Celebration in China
China celebrates birthdays especially for older people. But we do not just have birthday cake. Our traditional cake is called And Ku Kueh and has the shape of a tortoise which symbolises longevity, which means long life.
Tortoise cake - Ang Ku KuehWe have many different and delicious foods for birthdays. Among these are also fish, oranges, glutinous rice balls and long noodles. All these have special meanings to us:
- fish means that every year you have enough
- oranges mean that you are flourishing
- glutinous rice balls means going round and round
- long 'longevity' noodles: that means a long life
National Day - Festivals in China
National Day is not a traditional festival. National Day is a country’s birthday. Just like every person has a birthday, a country has a birthday too. Do you know when is your country’s birthday?
The National Day of the People’s Republic of China is celebrated on 1 October. National Day is celebrated in China since 1949.
Every ten years we have a special traditional event, the Military parade. This is very spectacular. First our Chairman Xi will make a statement. Next the military will line up with the land force, the navy, the air force and the female army. The uniforms are deep green blue white and red. So colorful!
Chinese National Day parade - image by Mirko KuzmanovicThe grand military parade takes place on Tian’anmen square. It is both very powerful and shocking! When I watch it on TV, I’m always so proud and excited. We also have a national holiday on National Day. We can do whatever we want. We can sleep, travel, go shopping, read, sing, play games and so on. We can be together with friends or we enjoy do it alone. I like it very much.
The celebration will continue through the night. So spectacular!
China National Day - Fireworks over ShanghaiFestivals in China | Resources
This article was researched and compiled by Abby Song and Annie Jiang, both from UP Ultra Phonics Reading Center in Chengdu/ China.
Thank you for this amazing article and all your wonderful insights into these Chinese traditions and popular festivals in China. A huge thank you goes also to Lisa, their amazing teacher for her support in growing and expanding our China pages for young readers.
Resources used for Festivals in China:
- A&E Television Networks. "Lunar New Year 2026." History. Last updated 18 February 2026. Last accessed 20 February 2026
- CLI Team. "China's Mid-Autumn Festival: A Celebration of Family, Friends, and the Coming Harvest." StudyCLI. 21 September 2021. Last accessed 20 February 2026
- Ruby Zhao. "QingMing Festival 2026." ChinaHighlights. Last accessed 20 February 2026
- Mike Yves. "In Pictures: China’s National Day Parade Features Pomp and Artillery." New York Times. 1 October 2019. Last accessed 20 February 2026
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Images on Festivals in China: Shutterstock.com; Musical corps at the Chinese National Day parade image by Mirko Kuzmanovic/shutterstock.com
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