National Holidays
Ethnic Minority Festivals
Tourism Festivals
Traditional Festivals
China has 16 legal festivals, including New Year's Day, Spring Festival, May Day, National Day, Qingming Festival, Dragon Boat Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival when all Chinese people will be on vacation. The other nine are for special industries or specific people like Women's Day, Arbor Day, Youth Day, International Nurse Day, Children's Day, Anniversary of the Founding of the Chinese Communist Party (the Party's Birthday) and Army Day of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, Teacher's Day, and Journalists' Day. At the festivals, people can enjoy the legal holidays. Always a lot of people go out of their homes for traveling or shopping.
Among these, two are 'Golden Weeks' (Spring Festival and National Day). Both holidays last for three days but by combining two weekends with them, people benefit from seven consecutive days off. During these two weeks, most people go out and enjoy themselves in a great variety of ways with a resultant boost to the economy, hence the nickname 'Golden Week'. Hotel rooms, train tickets or air tickets will definitely be in great demand then. Therefore, we recommend that people who are planning China tour packages avoid these Golden Weeks in view of the huge crowds that gather at the major tourist attractions.
Some people have a half day off on the following national holidays or anniversaries. Women have half day off on Women's Day. Young people over 14 years of age have a half day off on Youth Day. Children under 14 years old have a day off on Children's Day. Active members of the army have a half-day holiday on Army Day.
People celebrate these special national days but they do not have time off: Arbor Day, International Nurses' Day, Anniversary of the Founding of the Chinese Communist Party, Teachers' Day, and Journalists' Day.
The table below provides the detailed information of 2009 and 2010 public holidays. Hope it can help you make a good plan of your China tour.
| 2009&2010 Public Holidays Schedule | ||||
| Festival | Date | Legal Holidays | Holidays of 2009 | Holidays of 2010 |
| New Year's Day | January 1st | 1 day | January 1st-January 3rd | January 1st-January 3rd |
| Spring Festival | Subject to the lunation. | 3 days (the last day of the last lunar month and the first and second days of the first lunar month) | It falls on January 26th, 2009. The holiday is from January 24th to January 28th, 2009 | It falls on February 14th, 2010. |
| May Day | May 1st | 1 day | May 1st - 3rd, 2009 | May 1st - 3rd, 2010 |
| Mid-Autumn Day | August 15th according to the lunar calendar | 1 day | It falls on October 3rd, 2009. Together with the national holidays, there are 8 days' holiday, from October 1st to October 8th. | It falls on September 22nd, 2010. The holiday is from September 22nd to September 24th. |
| National Day | October 1st | 3 days (October 1st, 2nd, 3rd) | Together with the Mid-Autumn Day, there are 8 days' holiday, from October 1st to October 8th | October 1st - 7th, 2010 |
| Qingming Festival | April 4th or April 5th | 1 day | It falls on April 4th, 2009. The holiday is from April 3rd to April 5th. | It falls on April 5th, 2010. The holiday is from April 3rd to 5th. |
| Dragon Boat Festival | the 5th day of the 5th lunar month. | 1 day | It falls on May 28th, 2009. The holiday is from May 28th to May 30th. | It falls on June 16th, 2010. The holiday is from June 16th to June 18th. |
| Women's Day | March 8th | half day for women | half day of March 8th | half day of March 8th |
| Arbor Day | March 12th | no days off | no holidays | no holidays |
| Youth Day | May 4th | half day for youth above 14 years old | half day of May 4th | half day of May 4th |
| International Nurse Day | May 12th | no days off | no holidays | no holidays |
| Children's Day | June 1st | 1 day for children under 13 years old | June 1st | June 1st |
| Anniversary of the Founding of the Chinese Communist Party | July 1st | no days off | no holidays | no holidays |
| Army Day of the Chinese People's Liberation Army | August 1st | half day for active army | half day of August 1st for active army | half day of August 1st for active army |
| Teachers' Day | September 10th | no days off | no holidays | no holidays |
| Journalists' Day | November 8th | no days off | no holidays | no holidays |
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Travelers' Voices on Chinese Holidays
1.
Nov. 5,2009 07:25 Reply
Ms.Serene(Singapore) said:
Hi! Is lunar new year 13-20 Feb 2010 a good time to visit China, in particular Beijing and Yunnan?
2.
Oct. 30,2009 07:13 Reply
Ms.Wong(Malaysia) said:
Can i check when is the china school holiday in 2010?
Oct. 31,2009 20:23
Mr.rita(cn) replied:
What do you mean? The summer holiday of chinese school?
I do not think there is an exact date now.
3.
Oct. 28,2009 12:14 Reply
Mrs.jacqueline long(USA) said:
im not scared of lions,tigers,and bears
4.
Oct. 18,2009 20:53 Reply
Mr.peter(Singapore) said:
I want to the dragon boat festival in 2010, when should i go to china
Oct. 18,2009 22:57
Mr.paul(usa) replied:
Hi, it falls on 2010-6-16, you can plan your trip at that time
5.
Oct. 14,2009 17:43 Reply
Mrs.villalobos(united states) said:
this is the only website that actually answered my question... thxz sooooo much
6.
Oct. 11,2009 02:39 Reply
Mr.Jonathan(Kuwait) said:
hey just wanted to know when is the normal weekend holiday in china???
Oct. 11,2009 21:30
Mr.jill(CN) replied:
Saturday and sunday
7.
Oct. 9,2009 23:41 Reply
Mr.ben(china) said:
when will the winter holiday begin for the kindergarten schools and how long do they have off,summer holiday i had 2 month off in july and august.
Oct. 10,2009 05:00
Mr.rita(cn) replied:
The winter holiday begins from the late January, the holiday lasts about 20--30 days.
Summer holiday beginsfrom the middle of July, lasts about 40 days.
8.
Sep. 29,2009 07:42 Reply
Mr.dee kay(india) said:
this list is very useful for me
9.
Sep. 29,2009 00:34 Reply
Mr.Ron(Australia) said:
Mr Blare, yes so many holidays but most people work weekends to make up for it, work bloody long hours 6 days a week and get NO annual leave or sick leave.
BUT its a wonderful place with wonderful people - enjoy. Oh yes kids under about 25 have all done some English at school and many are very good at it, so dont worry about language [talk to the kids if u need help hehe]
Sep. 29,2009 03:09
Mr.Williamson(Canada) replied:
Spring Festival 2010 has been confirmed from 13 - 19 Feb? If so, I can plan ahead my vacation now...
10.
Sep. 17,2009 13:09 Reply
Mr.Yonatan(Israel) said:
Planning to visit Beijing with my kids form Oct 1 until Oct 8 2009.
Do all atractions operate normaly ? Is anything close these dates ?
Is it a bad time for first visit to Beijing ?
Sep. 19,2009 21:55
Mr.ella(cn) replied:
No, some of the sites have closed. Is it not advised to visit beijing in the national holiday, as there must be lots of people. You have go to xian, a beautiful city, worth visiting.