Chinese New Year Festival

Overview

You know how often New Year's Eve always turns into a massive drama? You're trying to organise twelve different people to get to five parties and/or pubs around the city, while also trying to get a glimpse of the fireworks, and you're doing your damndest to make sure that this one night will be the night to end all nights. Well, try celebrating the Chinese New Year instead.

Over a two week period in February, Sydney's Chinese population, along with everyone else who's decided that this year, the year of the rabbit, will be their lucky one, will be hitting Sydney's streets for a spectacular array of festival frivolity. Catch the dragon boat races down at Cockle Bay, watch the parade march from Town Hall to Chinatown, go on a Chinatown food tour, view a vast array of recent films from China in the Chinese Film Festival, and generally get in amongst the action as you usher in the lunar new year. Of particular note in this year's festival is the welcoming of a delegation from Hubei Province, famously home to the Three Gorges dam, who bring with them not only demonstrations of Wudang, a form of martial arts famous in the region, but also the Tujia Waving Hand Dance which will feature in the parade.

So with your little nose twitching for some Chinese New Year action, hop along to the city during the festival for a thumping good time.