Celebrate Lunar New Year around the US

Whether you’re seeking chef-driven restaurants or outdoor family fun, these five Lunar New Year destinations offer travelers a festive retreat.

By Cassandra Brooklyn | January 11, 2023 Updated: November 13, 2025

Celebrate Lunar New Year with Hilton

Lunar New Year, or Chinese New Year, is celebrated on the first day of the the traditional Chinese calendar and is also referred to as the Spring Festival in China. This year, festivities celebrating the Year of the Horse will run from mid-February through early March, culminating with a stunning display of cultural performances promoting peace and reconciliation at lantern festivals. Here are our top picks for where to experience the Lunar New Year throughout America.

Best places to celebrate Lunar New Year

New York

New York City is home to several Chinatowns across three boroughs — Manhattan, Queens, and Brooklyn — with the largest Chinatown in the U.S. situated in lower Manhattan. Considering all three neighborhoods are easily accessible by public transit, you could visit all three for the ultimate Lunar New Year experience. Lower Manhattan’s celebrations are unsurprisingly the city’s most prominent, with elaborate decorations and a can’t-miss parade. The lion dancing, which features dancers in stunning lion costumes, is not to be missed and is said to bring spectators good luck for the new year. Be sure to visit the historic Doyers Street, which is especially festive, with its brightly painted street mural and charming rows of lights and lanterns strung above the street. Schedule a stop at Chinatown’s Museum of Chinese in America to explore their collection of more than 85,000 artifacts documenting Chinese American diaspora since the early 1900s. The museum often holds a free Lunar New Year Family Festival with special programs and festivities to celebrate.

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San Francisco

Coming in at a close second for the largest Chinatown in the U.S., San Francisco is also where you’ll find the country’s oldest and perhaps most iconic Chinatown. Established in 1848, this cultural quarter now occupies some 30 city blocks and is one of the city’s top attractions. Through its famed gate — at the intersection of Grant and Bush streets — you’ll find specialty stores selling Chinese herbs, ceramics, and other goods, as well as tea shops, karaoke bars, restaurants, and more. Lunar New Year celebrations here include a famous Grand Parade with marching bands, lion dancers, stilt walkers, acrobats, decorated floats, and a 28-foot-long Golden Dragon, operated by a team of more than 100 people. Other festivities include a community street fair with fortune telling and traditional dancing, plus an open-air flower market selling fruit, candy, flowers, and plants. If you want to stay close to the action, consider Hilton San Francisco Financial District or Hilton San Francisco Union Square, both of which are conveniently located within walking distance of Chinatown.

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Boston

Famous for its clam chowder, cream pies, and some of the country’s most die-hard baseball fans, Boston is also where you’ll find the third-largest Chinatown in the U.S. After walking through contemporary Chinatown Park, which features plants native to Asia and marks the entrance to Boston’s Chinatown neighborhood, snap a picture in front of the eye-catching traditional paifang archway. Discover a diverse blend of Chinese, Thai, Cambodian, Vietnamese, and Japanese bakeries, restaurants, shops, and food markets as you admire the area’s many colorful murals. The city’s centralized Chinese New Year Parade is a great event for family and friends to welcome in a prosperous year. Activities include origami, lantern crafting, lion dance performances, and calligraphy. DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Boston – Downtown straddles the borders between Chinatown, downtown, and the nearby Theater District, creating the perfect centrally located stay.

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Houston

They say everything is bigger in Texas, which especially holds true when it comes to Houston’s Chinatown and Lunar New Year celebrations. Houston’s Asiatown is spread across a much larger footprint than most Chinatowns — 6 square miles (15.5 square kilometers), to be precise. When planning your Lunar New Year trip, be sure to explore the Chinese Community Center's Spring Festival celebration, which typically features a full-day of free family-friendly cultural activities, vendors, food, and performances. This jubilant annual event starts with programs highlighting art, cuisine, and traditions of Asian cultures. The Chinese Community Center also organizes bus tours, food tours, and heritage walking tours through Asiatown, along with dumpling-making classes, tai chi, and Chinese calligraphy demonstrations for a deeper understanding of Chinese culture.

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Las Vegas

Head to Las Vegas for a Lunar New Year celebration filled with top-notch entertainment, unique shopping opportunities, and authentic cuisine. Within Las Vegas’ Chinatown, Chinatown Plaza — the city’s largest concentration of Asian businesses — features colorful architecture and walkways adorned with illustrations of Chinese customs, art, and history. Chinatown Plaza also has a plethora of dining options, from barbecue to boba, and is home to the only Chinese bookstore in Nevada. If you’re staying at Las Vegas Hilton at Resorts World, Lunar New Year festivities will be right at your doorstep. Resorts World Theatre typically hosts an exceptional Lunar New Year performance while on-site restaurants like Redtail and FUHU Shackwill offer special menu items in honor of the Year of the Horse celebration. For high-end dining, old-world glamour, and a traditional Chinese New Year experience, book a reservation at Genting Palace for the Family Dim Sum Brunch.

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Cassandra Brooklyn

Cassandra Brooklyn is a freelance writer and guidebook author specializing in travel, accessibility, sustainability, and all things outdoors. Originally hailing from the Midwest, she now lives in New York City but escapes to adventures around the world as often as possible. She's the author of the cycling guidebook, Cuba By Bike, has contributed to multiple guidebooks about Egypt, Portugal, and the United States, and she has bylines in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, National Geographic, Forbes, The Daily Beast, and Lonely Planet, among others.

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