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Hong Kong for the holidays

Hong Kong for the holidays

Old Jun 15, 2017, 7:25 pm
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Question Hong Kong for the holidays

Hello! I'm planning a trip to Hong Kong over the holidays. I've never been and would really love to check it out. My trip would be around Dec 21st through Jan 2nd.

From my understanding, China doesn't celebrate the New Year on Jan 1. I'm very curious, does anyone know what Christmas and (Dec 31, Jan 1) New Year celebrations are like in Hong Kong? I wish I could be there for Chinese New Year, I've heard that is pretty incredible.

Side note: flights from ATL are pretty up there during that time $$ 😭
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Old Jun 15, 2017, 8:43 pm
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Originally Posted by drdd
Hello! I'm planning a trip to Hong Kong over the holidays. I've never been and would really love to check it out. My trip would be around Dec 21st through Jan 2nd.

From my understanding, China doesn't celebrate the New Year on Jan 1. I'm very curious, does anyone know what Christmas and (Dec 31, Jan 1) New Year celebrations are like in Hong Kong? I wish I could be there for Chinese New Year, I've heard that is pretty incredible.

Side note: flights from ATL are pretty up there during that time $$ 😭


As a former British colony Hong Kong celebrates both as Christmas and New Years are public holidays in Hong Kong.


Some buildings/skyscrapers will put up Xmas lights, and there are some fireworks and countdown activities. Flights and hotels will be expensive.
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Old Jun 16, 2017, 6:23 am
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We stayed in Hong Kong 2 nights post-cruise this past Dec (I think Dec 11-13 or around then) Loved the Christmas lights on buildings! (in addition to the standard lights that are amazing on their own!)

We don't have hotel loyalty or points to use and chose the Hotel Icon (run by a hotel management college) and it was amazing!! We booked a club floor room and were upgraded to a fabulous jr suite with harbor view. Almost didn't want to leave the room!
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Old Jun 16, 2017, 9:54 am
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At least in the US, all things Christmas tend to end on Dec 25. That is, on Dec 26, decorations are down, background music in stores has returned to normal, and so on. In Hong Kong, everything tends to stay in full "Christmas mode" until Jan 1, so you'd see that for almost all of your visit.

I wish I could be there for Chinese New Year, I've heard that is pretty incredible.
I thought the same thing, and in fact did so this year. I was underwhelmed. As the biggest holiday of the year, it would be kind of like visiting the US during Dec 23-26. "The biggest holiday of the year" = many things closed, as people are focused on doing things with their families.
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Old Jun 16, 2017, 11:01 am
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Airfares are up at that time because outbound a lot of HK people vacation and inbound a lot of overseas students and such return, together with holiday visitors from nearby countries.

As for CNY, in HK and the Mainland and Taiwan, the two weeks or so leading up to the holiday are pretty vibrant, but the holiday period itself is sedate. Ditto Tet in Vietnam.
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Old Jun 17, 2017, 12:18 am
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Originally Posted by drdd
From my understanding, China doesn't celebrate the New Year on Jan 1.
Hong Kong is very much a different country than China, even both are the same country politically.
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Old Jun 17, 2017, 6:31 pm
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New Years Eve in Hong Kong was great!!!

LKF (Lan Kwai Fong) is VERY active, with a parade and countdown. Fireworks on Victoria Harbour. Great time afterwards in Wan Chai bars.

I'd do it again in a heartbeat!
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Old Jun 18, 2017, 6:21 am
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Yeah, New Year (Jan 1) is massive here in HK.
Lot's of partying and a big fireworks display in the harbour at midnight. It's a public holiday here so banks and government offices will be closed but nearly everything else stays open.

Christmas day is the same with most things open. Christmas will be very busy though as most locals don't celebrate Christmas but have the public holiday on the 25th.

Here in HK most chain stores and sites stay open over CNY too. But it is noticeably quieter and many/ most local shops and restaurants will close. Some for a day and some for the whole holiday.
Going to the Mainland or Vietnam is more like visiting Atlanta on Christmas Day - everything is closed!
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Old Jun 18, 2017, 7:17 pm
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Originally Posted by TravelDream
Yeah, New Year (Jan 1) is massive here in HK.
Lot's of partying and a big fireworks display in the harbour at midnight.
I guess amongst the (rapidly diminishing) expat community it is - so around Lan Kwai Fong and a couple of other areas; amongst locals, not so much. The midnight fireworks are much smaller and quieter than the really big displays on the second day of Lunar New Year, National Day (1 Oct) and (some years) Handover Day (1 July).
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Old Jun 18, 2017, 7:18 pm
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Originally Posted by Gongzuokuang
New Years Eve in Hong Kong was great!!!

LKF (Lan Kwai Fong) is VERY active, with a parade and countdown. Fireworks on Victoria Harbour. Great time afterwards in Wan Chai bars.

I'd do it again in a heartbeat!


I think the "parade" you mentioned about is just a lot of drunk people walking in the same direction - there's no planned parade and the reason it looks like a parade is that the police have enforced people to walk in the same direction (LKF is a block with several roads) since an incident involved people stepping over each other back in 1993.
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Old Jun 18, 2017, 8:46 pm
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Originally Posted by christep
I guess amongst the (rapidly diminishing) expat community it is - so around Lan Kwai Fong and a couple of other areas; amongst locals, not so much. The midnight fireworks are much smaller and quieter than the really big displays on the second day of Lunar New Year, National Day (1 Oct) and (some years) Handover Day (1 July).
I've never actually been to LKF at new year, but the locals certainly do celebrate it.
Go to any bar with a view of the harbour on the Kowloon side and they will all be packed with locals. As will Knutsford Terrace.
From what my colleagues (local Chinese) have told me, lots of them seem to go to LKF too.
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