Lunar New Year is also called Chinese New Year. However, this festival heralding the spring season is observed throughout Asia. In Vietnam, it is called Têt, which is short for “Têt Nguyên Đán”, meaning “Festival of the First Morning of the First Day” (referring to the first day of the first month in the lunar calendar). Listed below is information about the lunar calendar and traditions for the Lunar New Year in cultures around the world and in Hawaiʻi.
2025 Year of the Snake
Lunar New Year begins on Wednesday, January 29, 2025 and is the Year of the Snake. Snake years include 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001, 2013, and 2025. The next Snake year is 2037.
2025 Lunar New Year Events on Hawaiʻi Island
- HILO: Chinese New Year 2025 Lion Dance Schedule | Hilo:
- Friday, January 31, 11:30am at Big Island Bayfront (250 Kamehameha Ave, Hilo, HI 96720)
- Friday, January 31, 4:00pm at FC Gym (777 Kinoole St, Hilo, HI 96720)
- Friday, January 31, 7:00 and 8:00pm. Hilo Town Market (69 Waianuenue Avenue, Hilo, Hawaii 96720)
- Saturday, February 1, 10:00am – 2:00pm. Prince Kuhio Plaza (11 E Puainako St, Hilo, HI 96720)
- Saturday, February 1, 4:00pm. Waiakea Center (315 Makaala St, Hilo, HI 96720)
- Sunday, February 2, 10:30am. Hilo Farmer’s Market (Corner of Mamo Street and Kamehameha Ave, Downtown Hilo)
- WAIKOLOA
- Saturday, February 1, 4:30-5:30. Events | Kings Shops. 3:30 PM Keiki activities, 4:30 PM Live entertainment and a traditional Chinese lion dance blessing by Yau Gong Lion Dance, 5:30 PM Keiki Costume Contest.
- Saturday, February 8, 4-8 PM. Lunar New Year Celebration – Queens’ Marketplace (69-201 Waikoloa Beach Dr, Waikoloa, HI 96738)
2025 Lunar New Year Events on Kauaʻi
- Chinese New Year 2025 Lion Dance Schedule | Kauai:
- Friday, February 7, 11:00am. Princeville Center (5-4280 Kuhio Highway, Princeville, HI 96722)
- Friday, February 7, 3:00pm. Walmart – Lihue (3-3300 Kuhio Hwy, Lihue, HI 96766)
- Friday, February 7, 4:00pm. Downtown Lihue – Community Center (4286 Rice St, Lihue, HI 96766)
- Friday, February 7, 6:00pm. Hanapepe – Art Night
- Saturday, February 8, 9:15am – 9:45am. Kaua’i Museum (Kaumualii Hwy Ste 1710, Lihue, HI 96766)
- Saturday, February 8, 11:00am. Kukui Grove Center (4428 Rice St, Lihue, HI 96766)
2025 Lunar New Year Events on Oʻahu
- Saturday, January 25, 2025. 2025 Chinatown Festival & Parade. Festival 9:00 am – 10:00 pm on Beretania Street on Maunakea around ‘A’ala Street & ‘A’ala Park. Enjoy lion dances, martial arts demonstrations, food and craft vendors, keiki make-and-take craft activities, live entertainment, bounce houses, and food vendors. Parade 4:30 P.M. on Hotel Street from the Hawaii State Capitol Thru Chinatown.
- Saturday, January 25, 2025. Chinese New Year 2025 – Market City Shopping Center in Kaimukī. 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Lion dancing, firecrackers, and taiko drumming in the lower-level parking lot. Giveaways for the first 300 attendees.
- Saturday, January 25, 2025. Lunar New Year | International Market Place in Waikīkī. Lion dance 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Chinese calligraphy 1 to 3 p.m.
- Wednesday, January 29, 2025. Lunar New Year | Royal Hawaiian Center in Waikīkī. 500 pm – 5:30 pm: Lion Dance in The Royal Grove. 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm (approximately): Lion Dance throughout the Center.
- January 30 – February 1, 2025. Surfjack Hotel & Swim Club in Waikīkī. 7:30PM lion dance nightly in the restaurant. Reservations recommended.
- February 1, 2025. Lunar New Year Celebration | SALT at Our Kakaʻako. 11 a.m.-1 p.m. martial arts demonstration, appearances by Miss Chinatown Hawai‘i Queens, and lion dance.
- Saturday, February 1, 2025. Events | Ala Moana Center. Starting at 11am, Lion Dance throughout the Center.
- Saturday, February 1, 2025. Events | Ala Moana Center. 3:oo-4:30pm. Chinese Calligraphy Demonstration. Mall Level 2, Ewa Wing Stage.
- Saturday, February 1, 2025. Events | Ala Moana Center. 3pm & 5pm. Lion Pole Jumping. Centerstage.
- Saturday, February 8, 2025. Lunar New Year | Royal Hawaiian Center in Waikīkī. 6:00 pm – 6:30 pm: Wah Ngai Lion Dance Association Acrobatic Lion Dance.
- Sunday, February 9, 2025. Lunar New Year | Royal Hawaiian Center in Waikīkī. 3:00 pm – 6:00 pm: Calligraphy by Ina Chang.
- Wednesday, February 19, 5:30pm. Chinese New Year 2025 Lion Dance Schedule | Oʻahu Bishop Museum Kaiwi’ula Night Market (1525 Bernice St, Honolulu, HI 96817)
Lunar New Year traditions in Hawai’i
The biggest Lunar New Year celebration in Hawaiʻi takes place in Honolulu’s Chinatown. Festivities include a lion dance, entertainment, and food. Other shopping centers and performance venues throughout the Hawaiian Islands typically host cultural performances, demonstrations, giveaways, and contests. Listed below are some Hawaiian foods to celebrate Lunar New Year.
- Chicken Long Rice is a Hawaiian homestyle dish made with boiled chicken and long cellophane (or glass) noodles (the “rice”) simmered with garlic and ginger. Eating long noodles for Lunar New Year symbolize longevity. Chicken Long Rice recipe from Foodland
- Manapua are steamed bao (buns), usually filled with char siu pork. Find manapua at specialty shops, food trucks, convenience stores, and grocery stores (hot deli or frozen foods). https://youtu.be/AaC7TIU7L8I
- Mandoo are filled dumplings similar to gyoza or pot stickers. They are often included as part of a plate lunch or bento. Find ready-made frozen post stickers at most grocers. Pan-Fried Mandoo (Korean dumplings) recipe from Hawaiian Electric
- Other Hawaiian foods: laulau filled with pork and fish, fresh tangerines, pickled onions, and crack seed (salty dried fruits).
- More info: 37 delicious Hawaiian foods are paradise in your mouth – Hawaiʻi on the Cheap (hawaiionthecheap.com)
Lion Dance & Red Envelopes
The lion dance is a traditional folk art performed for Chinese Lunar New Year and other special occasions (such as a new business). The lion symbolizes power and is believed to bring good fortune and chase away evil spirits. Loud drumming represents the heartbeat of the lion and may also be accompanied by the clanging of cymbals and gongs.
Two performers usually work the colorful lion, one for the oversized head and front legs; the second for the back and hind legs. The playful movements include raising the head, arching the back and opening the mouth as it swaggers through the crowd.
Attendees place red gift envelopes (Cantonese “lai see” or Mandarin “hongbao”) in the lion’s mouth. Red envelopes are also given by elders to younger family members for Chinese New Year. But red envelopes are also given at other times of year as a gift for loved ones or a tip to service workers or by anyone who wishes to express thanks, friendship, or gratitude. Red envelops are also offered on special occasions such as graduations and weddings.
Preferably fill your red envelopes with an even number of money notes (such as two or six). Multiples of eight or nine signify wealth or longevity, respectively. Just don’t give out multiples of four because four signifies death.
Fireworks laws in Hawaiʻi
Note that Hawai’i state laws restrict the purchase and use of fireworks to specific days during the year, which includes 9 p.m. New Year’s Eve to 1 a.m. New Year’s Day, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Chinese New Year’s Day, and 1 p.m. to 9 p.m. Fourth of July. In addition, there are other restrictions and required permits. For information from Honolulu Fire Department: Firecrackers | Honolulu Fire Department or visit your local county fire department. For the complete list of Hawaii State laws governing fireworks, visit Hawaii HRS 132D.
About the Lunar Calendar
The Gregorian calendar is based on the solar year–the time is takes Earth to rotate around the sun. In contrast, the lunar calendar follows the phases of the moon as it orbits Earth. The beginning of the New Year on the lunar calendar occurs halfway between the winter solstice and spring equinox, somewhere between January 20 and February 10. Traditionally, Lunar New Year precedes the planting season when new spring crops are sown.
A lunar month begins with the “New Moon”, when the Moon is between the Earth and Sun. The Moon is not being illuminated by the Sun, which makes it blend in with the night sky, aka the “dark side of the moon”. As the New Moon orbits or “waxes” around Earth it becomes visible. First it is crescent shaped (“waxing crescent”). Halfway through the lunar month, it becomes a fully illuminated “Full Moon”, when the Earth is between the Sun and the Moon. Finally, the Full Moon completes the orbit (“wanes”). More info: What Are the Moon’s Phases? | NASA Space Place – NASA Science for Kids
The Chinese lunar calendar follows a 12-year cycle. Each year is associated with one of 12 animal symbols in the zodiac. According to legend, the Jade Emperor invited the animals of his kingdom to enter a race through the countryside. The first 12 to finish the long race would each rule over one year every 12 years. The 12 animals are: rat, ox (Vietnamese buffalo), tiger, rabbit (Vietnamese cat), dragon, snake, horse, sheep (Vietnamese goat), monkey, rooster, dog, and pig.
About Lunar New Year traditions
Preparations begin before the first day of the Lunar New Year and then the celebration continues for several days. Preparations include cleaning and decorating the home, buying new clothes, paying off debts, and resolving family arguments.
Celebrations for Lunar New Year include the lion dance to bring good fortune and chase away evil spirits, honoring ancestors, gifting red money envelopes, and eating special foods. The color red and yellow signify good fortune. Eight is a lucky number.
Foods for Lunar New Year include long noodles, dumplings, rice cakes, spring rolls, turnips and radishes, fish, pork, and other dishes. Traditional Vietnamese Têt foods include special rice cakes (“Banh Chung” and “Banh Tet”, roasted watermelon seeds, pickled onions, boiled chicken, mung bean pudding, Vietnamese sausage (giò chả), red sticky rice, and sweet dried fruits.
There are many ways to say “Happy Lunar New Year “. Listed below are a few phrases in different languages.
- In Cantonese, “gōng xǐ fā cái“ (phonetically gung hay fat choy) is a common phrase that wishes the receiver prosperity. So it’s not strictly a “happy new year” phrase.
- In Manadarin Chinese, you can say “xīn nián kuài lè” (phonetically shin nee-an kwai le).
- On the day of Têt, say ‘chúc mừng năm mới’ (phonetically chook moong nam mwha).
- In Hawaiian, say “Hauʻoli makahiki hou” (phonetically how-olee mah-kah-hee-kee hoe), which of course means “Happy New Year” though it is merely a translation of the English phrase and not a Hawaiin greeting per se.
Event calendar of free and affordable things to do
Listed below are all types of free and affordable things to do in the next 30 days across the Hawaiʻi Pae ʻĀina.
Featured Events are listed first each day, highlighted by a photo. These are unique, popular, or annual events that we or our advertisers don’t want you to overlook.
You might also like: Hawaiʻi on the Cheap – affordable living and things to do (hawaiionthecheap.com)
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