Key Takeaways
- Chinese New Year 2027 falls on Saturday 6 February, beginning the Year of the Goat.
- Hong Kong's holidays are days one, three and four, not the first three. The second day is a Sunday, so the fourth substitutes.
- Taiwan has approved a seven-day break, 4 to 10 February, with compensatory leave on the 9th and 10th.
- Mainland China has not published its 2027 arrangement. Every "8-day holiday" figure you can read is a projection.
- Hotels, large retail and major attractions stay open. Small family-run shops and restaurants are what close.
Chinese New Year 2027 falls on Saturday 6 February, beginning the Year of the Goat. Hong Kong and Taiwan have both published official holiday dates. Mainland China has not: the State Council issues its annual arrangement in November or December, so every specific 2027 date circulating for the mainland right now is a projection. What closes is smaller than most travellers expect, and what stays open includes almost everything a visitor needs.
If you are deciding whether to travel during the festival, the useful questions are which dates are actually fixed and what will be shut when you arrive. Both have clearer answers than the internet suggests.
When is Chinese New Year 2027, and which holidays are official?
New Year's Day is Saturday 6 February 2027. Hong Kong's general holidays are 6, 8 and 9 February, gazetted in May 2026. Taiwan's approved government calendar gives a seven-day break from 4 to 10 February. Mainland China's arrangement has not been published.
| Jurisdiction | Official 2027 holiday | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Hong Kong | 6, 8 and 9 February | Gazetted 15 May 2026 |
| Taiwan | 4 to 10 February, seven days | Approved 21 May 2026 |
| Mainland China | Reported as 5 to 12 February | Not announced |
Hong Kong's arrangement contains a detail most guides get wrong. The holidays are the first, third and fourth days of the new year, not the first three. The government's own notice explains why: "As the second day of Lunar New Year in 2027 falls on a Sunday, the fourth day of Lunar New Year will be designated as a general holiday in substitution." For anyone with a standard weekend, that produces four consecutive days off from Saturday 6 February through Tuesday 9 February.
Taiwan's seven days include compensatory leave. Lunar New Year's Eve is 5 February, and because days one and two land on Saturday and Sunday, make-up holidays are granted on Tuesday 9 and Wednesday 10 February. You may see a five-day figure quoted elsewhere; that reflects the general rule rather than the approved 2027 calendar, which gives seven.
Mainland China's dates are genuinely unknown. The State Council published the 2026 arrangement on 4 November 2025. The 2027 notice is expected on a similar timeline, which means late this year. Until then, the widely repeated "eight-day holiday, 5 to 12 February" is an extrapolation.
What actually closes during Chinese New Year?
Offices, banks and factories close. Small family-run shops and restaurants close, often for several days, because the people who run them are with their families. Hotels, large retail chains, museums and major tourist attractions stay open, and many are busier than usual.
The mental model that helps: the festival empties workplaces, not tourist infrastructure.
| Usually closed | Usually open |
|---|---|
| Offices, banks, government services | Hotels and serviced accommodation |
| Small independent restaurants | Large restaurant chains and hotel dining |
| Family-run shops and markets | Shopping malls and large retail |
| Factories and logistics | Major museums and attractions |
In mainland China, closures run longest and can extend a week or more. In Hong Kong, Singapore, Taipei and other international cities, the disruption is noticeably shorter and the tourist areas keep running throughout.
The practical risk is dining, not sightseeing. Arriving in a smaller city and assuming you will find somewhere open for dinner on New Year's Eve is where trips go wrong. A hotel with its own restaurant, or a booking made in advance, solves most of it.
Should you travel during Chinese New Year at all?
If it is your first visit to the region, the week either side is usually better than the week itself. You get the decorations and the atmosphere without the closures and the transport crush. If you specifically want to see the festival, go, but book accommodation and intercity transport well ahead.
The single biggest constraint is not opening hours. It is movement.
The Spring Festival travel period is the heaviest annual movement of people anywhere in the world, and domestic transport inside mainland China is the pressure point. Train tickets on popular routes can sell out within hours of release. Flights and hotels across the wider region price accordingly.
Three ways to make it work:
- Arrive before the holiday starts and stay put rather than trying to move during it.
- Base yourself in a large international city. Hong Kong, Singapore and Taipei keep far more open than smaller mainland cities.
- Book intercity transport the moment it is released, which for Chinese rail is typically weeks rather than months ahead.
How long does the disruption actually last?
Shorter than the holiday calendar suggests in international cities, and longer than it suggests in mainland China. The official holiday is a few days; the practical effect runs from a few days before New Year's Eve to roughly a week after, and it tapers rather than stopping.
The festival is fifteen days long in the traditional calendar, ending with the Lantern Festival, but almost nothing is closed for that whole period. What matters is the concentrated stretch around the turn of the year.
| Period | What to expect |
|---|---|
| Three to four days before | Transport filling up, some early closures |
| New Year's Eve and the first two days | Peak closures. Many small businesses shut |
| Days three to five | Gradual reopening, transport still heavy |
| The following week | Largely normal in cities, quieter in smaller towns |
| Through the Lantern Festival | Decorations and events continue, business as usual |
The tail end is the pleasant part and the part most people miss. Lanterns and decorations stay up well past the closures, so arriving a week after New Year's Day gives you a great deal of the atmosphere with almost none of the friction.
What changes between cities?
A great deal. Hong Kong, Singapore and Taipei keep the overwhelming majority of visitor-facing businesses running. Smaller mainland cities can feel genuinely shut for several days, and that difference should drive where you base yourself.
The distinction is not really about the size of the city. It is about how much of its economy serves visitors rather than residents. A neighbourhood restaurant that exists for local families will close so that family can eat together. A hotel restaurant, a museum or a mall food court will not.
Three practical consequences:
Base yourself somewhere international if the dates are fixed. The same week that is difficult in a small mainland city is straightforward in Hong Kong or Singapore.
Expect attractions to be busy rather than closed. Domestic tourism surges during the holiday, so major sites can be more crowded than usual, not less. This surprises people who assume a public holiday means empty streets.
Book restaurants in advance, particularly for New Year's Eve itself. The reunion dinner is the single most important meal of the year for many families, which means restaurants are either fully booked or closed. Very few are simply open and quiet.
What should you watch for before booking?
Mainland China's official 2027 arrangement, which should be published in November or December 2026. Until it appears, do not build a trip around specific mainland holiday dates, because the ones being quoted are estimates.
If your plans depend on mainland dates, wait for the State Council notice or keep bookings flexible. Hong Kong and Taiwan are already fixed and can be planned against now.
Planning a trip around the festival
Navoy is an AI travel agent that plans trips and books hotels and airport transfers in one platform. Chinese New Year is the clearest case in the calendar where the same trip a week earlier costs less and works better, so comparing dates rather than destinations is where the value is.
Frequently asked questions
What year is Chinese New Year 2027?
It is the Year of the Goat, sometimes rendered as Sheep or Ram, all valid translations of the same zodiac animal. The Goat is the eighth animal in the twelve-year cycle. The lunar year runs from 6 February 2027 to 25 January 2028.
Are shops and restaurants open during Chinese New Year?
Large chains, malls and hotel restaurants stay open. Small independent and family-run places frequently close for several days, particularly around New Year's Eve and the first two days. In mainland China these closures last longest; in Hong Kong, Singapore and Taipei they are shorter.
Is Chinese New Year a good time to visit Asia?
It is a spectacular time to see the festival and a difficult time to move around. Visiting one or two weeks before or after gives you the decorations and much of the atmosphere without the transport pressure and closures. For a first visit to the region, that is usually the better trade.
How long is the Chinese New Year holiday in 2027?
It varies by jurisdiction. Hong Kong has three general holidays on 6, 8 and 9 February, which for most people means four consecutive days off. Taiwan has an approved seven-day break from 4 to 10 February. Mainland China's 2027 arrangement has not yet been published by the State Council.
Sources
- Hong Kong Government, general holidays for 2027 - gazetted 15 May 2026, including the substitution rule.
- Hong Kong Labour Department, statutory holidays 2027 - confirms the Lunar New Year dates.
- Taiwan Directorate-General of Personnel Administration - approved 2027 government office calendar, 21 May 2026.
- State Council policy document index - the 2026 arrangement was published 4 November 2025; no 2027 notice as of September 2026.
- Smithsonian Institution, Year of the Goat - zodiac year and lunar year span.
All dates verified 12 September 2026.
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About the Author
Ranym Garali
Ranym is the Marketing and Content Lead at Navoy. She's been writing about travel for two years and digs into the data behind each piece, flight prices, visa rules and what people are actually searching for , so the advice holds up in practice.
