Here’s your guide to the 2018 Chinese New Year parades, events and more for the Lunar New Year in New York City. The Year of the dog is coming, how’re you going to celebrate it?
In February, the Lunar New Year will officially welcome in the Year of the Dog, according to the traditional Chinese calendar. Where to go to celebrate the event? Chinatown of course! It will be, as always, the focal point for a week’s worth of events, parades, food and other activities.
The festivities start on February 16 this year, we’ll keep this list updated as new dates drop!
19th Lunar New Year Firecracker Ceremony and Cultural Festival
When – February 16 at 11 a.m.
Where – Sara D. Roosevelt Park at Grand Street
On the morning of February 16, the Better Chinatown Society will light 600,000 firecrackers to officially herald the Year of the Dog …and of course ward off evil spirits, we have more than our fair share in NYC. As well as the pyrotechnics, there will be lion dances, giveaways, craft vendors and food booths. Get ready to dance, drink and eat your fill of traditional delicacies.
19th Annual Chinese New Year Parade and Festival
When – February 25 at 1 pm
Where – Mott & Canal to Chatham Square to East Broadway in the direction of Manhattan Bridge, finishing at Eldridge and Forsyth Streets towards Grand Street next to the Sara D. Roosevelt Park.
Always one of the genuine highpoints of the year, the hype for the “Chinese New Year Parade” in NYC is real! Chinatown will be overrun with dragons and dancers, while some of the city’s finest traditional Chinese restaurants some delicious treats in honor of Lunar New Year.
Featured image source [Wikimedia Commons]