When is Lunar New Year 2027, and where in Asia should you travel (or avoid)?

Lunar New Year 2027 holiday dates by country

• Vietnam (Tết): Tết itself is Saturday 6 February; the public-sector holiday is 4 to 10 February. The longest and most disruptive break in the region. See our Tết 2027 guide

• South Korea (Seollal): Sunday 7 February; public holiday Saturday 6 to Tuesday 9 February, with 9 February a substitute day. See our Seollal 2027 guide

• Mainland China (Spring Festival): New Year's Day is 6 February and New Year's Eve 5 February. Since 2025 the statutory holiday has been four days including New Year's Eve, usually stretched into a longer break with swapped working days. The State Council normally publishes the exact 2027 schedule in November; check it before booking

• Taiwan: government holiday Thursday 4 to Wednesday 10 February, seven days, per the 2027 calendar from the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration

• Hong Kong: general holidays Saturday 6 to Tuesday 9 February, with the fourth day replacing the second day, which falls on a Sunday

• Singapore: 6 and 7 February, with Monday 8 February a holiday because the second day falls on a Sunday, per the Ministry of Manpower

• Malaysia: federal holidays on 6 and 7 February. Listings disagree on whether a replacement day applies on Monday 8 February; check the official 2027 list

• Indonesia (Imlek): public holiday 6 February, with collective leave on 5 February

• Philippines: Chinese New Year on 6 February is a special non-working day

• Thailand: not a national public holiday, but widely celebrated by Thai-Chinese families, especially in Bangkok's Yaowarat (Chinatown)

• Japan: no Lunar New Year holiday. Japan's own New Year is 1 January

Where to avoid, and why

Vietnam shuts down more than anywhere else on this list. Many family-run restaurants, market stalls and shops close for several days, and the days before Tết are the busiest travel days of the year, with sleeper trains and domestic flights sold out weeks ahead. Hotels and big tourist restaurants stay open, so a week in one city can work, but a north-to-south trip in the holiday week is hard. For the weather side of a February trip, see Vietnam in January.

Mainland China has the largest seasonal migration in the world around the Spring Festival, the chunyun. Train tickets sell out the moment they go on sale, and many small businesses close for days. Popular sights then fill up with domestic tourists in the middle of the holiday.

Taiwan and Korea are less extreme. Expect full trains out of Taipei and Seoul at the start of the break and back at the end, and some restaurants and traditional markets closed for two or three days. In Korea, the palaces have offered free entry over Seollal in recent years; our Seollal guide has the details.

Hong Kong and Singapore are still easy to visit. Many small shops and restaurants close for one to three days, but big malls, hotels and attractions stay open, and the decorations and markets beforehand are part of the draw.

Where to go instead: open, and still festive

Bangkok. Lunar New Year is not a public holiday in Thailand, so trains, buses and businesses run normally, but Yaowarat Road in Chinatown fills with red lanterns, lion dances and food stalls. It is one of the most accessible places in Asia to see the festival. Our Bangkok guide, Bangkok 3-day itinerary and where to stay in Bangkok cover the city. February is also peak dry season in Thailand; see best time to visit Thailand.

Singapore and Penang. Both have large Chinese communities, so the celebrations are everywhere, while the countries keep working apart from two or three public holidays.

Bali and the Philippines. Both have a one-day holiday at most, so travel is not affected, though flights from China, Korea and Taiwan bring more visitors to the beach resorts that week.

Japan. No holiday at all, so the main effect is more visitors from the rest of East Asia, especially in Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto and Hokkaido. In 2027 Lunar New Year also falls during the Sapporo Snow Festival (4 to 11 February), so book Sapporo hotels early.

Prices, flights and booking lead times

Flights within and out of China, Vietnam, Taiwan and Korea are at their most expensive around the start and end of the holiday. Flights from those countries to Thailand, Japan, Singapore and Bali also rise in price, because the holiday is the main time for overseas trips. If you are flying into the region from Europe, North America or Australia, the extra cost is mostly on those regional legs.

• Domestic trains in China, Vietnam and Korea: sell out first. Book on the day sales open

• Hotels in tourist cities: rise for the holiday week; book early with free cancellation

• The middle days are quieter: in Vietnam and Korea the first and last days of the break are the worst for moving around; the middle days, when families are at home, are often calm on the roads

• Check closures a week ahead: museums and markets publish holiday hours only shortly before the break

Ramadan starts in the same week in 2027

In 2027 Ramadan is expected to begin around 8 February, two days after Lunar New Year, with the exact date set by moon sighting. That matters for Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei, which celebrate both. Expect Lunar New Year festivities in the Chinese communities, then daytime fasting and evening markets from the start of Ramadan. Eid al-Fitr in Indonesia is set for 10 and 11 March 2027, with collective leave around it; our Asia holiday calendar 2027 lists the dates.

Where we were for Lunar New Year, and what we recommend

We were in Thailand from 7 December 2022 to 21 January 2023, finishing with four days in Bangkok, then flew on to Australia on 21 January, the day before Lunar New Year 2023. So we have not seen the festival in Asia ourselves. This guide is built from government holiday notices, and each date above comes from the official 2027 calendars where they are published.

Our recommendation for a February 2027 trip: if you want to see the celebrations, spend 5 to 8 February in Bangkok or Singapore, then move on. If you are planning Vietnam, start the trip after about 11 February, or arrive before 3 February and stay in one place over Tết. For Korea, go anywhere but Seoul's train stations on 6 and 9 February. Our winter travel guide sets out where our own route was each month from November to March.

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