If you’re planning to visit Taipei during Chinese New Year, you’ve probably heard that many things will be closed and that it’s not the best time of the year to visit.
While it’s true that Taipei can feel a bit like a ghost town at this time, there will be more places open and things to do than you might imagine. What’s more, it’s a great time to see cherry blossoms!
In this article, I’m going to cover exactly which days places will be open or closed this Chinese New year, and on which days, including popular attractions, night markets, restaurants, department stores, and convenience stores.
Chinese New Year 2024 Holiday Dates
In 2025, Chinese New Year Day is on Wednesday, January 29. Everyone will be off work from Saturday January 25 to Sunday, February 2, which is nine days off.
This year is a little interesting in that people will have several days off before the actual LNY date. This means the rush to leave Taipei (and other big cities) won’t be so crazy, as it will be spread out over several days. The city will empty and shut down gradually, not abruptly.
Here’s a table of the days of the holiday and what to expect for each of them.
Date | Comments |
Fri Jan 24 | Still a working day and everything will be open. People might start to leave the city, especially in the evening. Bad time to book trains! |
Sat Jan 25 | Not an official holiday, but it’s Saturday, so most people will start their holiday on this day. People continuing to leave the city, so hard time to travel out of Taipei, but most things will still be open in the city. |
Sun, Jan 26 | Like yesterday. |
Mon, Jan 27 | First official day off. Taipei will be very quiet by this point, with some things closed. |
Tues, Jan 28 | Lunar New Year’s Eve. Taipei will be dead and almost everything closed. Almost all locals are staying in with their extended families now, so it’s actually a decent day to travel around the country if you have to. |
Wed, Jan 29 | New Year’s Day. Taipei still dead, but some attractions will open (see below). Temples will be busy as locals (any ones still in the city) go to pray. Visit Longshan Temple to see the activity. Dragon and lion dances at Grand Hyatt. Also not a bad day to travel around as locals are still mostly staying in with their family. |
Thurs, Jan 30 | New Year’s Day 2. On this day, locals should go to visit the mother’s side of the family, so highways and trains could be busy again, but not so crazy. Lion dancing at CKS Memorial Hall. |
Fri, Jan 31 | Dragon and lion dances at Ximending Red House 15:00-16:00. |
Fri, Jan 31 to Sun Feb. 2 | Local families traveling around en masse, so everywhere around the country will be extremely busy, hotels full, trains hard to get, highways clogged. |
Best Days to Travel
Based on the information in the above table, I suggest that you avoid trying to travel out from the city from Jan 24 to 27. On those days, highways will be traffic jams and train tickets will be sold out. Stick to the city (I’ll introduce places below) or short day trips from the city by bus or local train.
Popular destinations like Sun Moon Lake and Alishan may actually be OK to visit from Jan 24 to 30, because most locals are going to their relatives’ houses, not usually going sightseeing (yet). Jan 28 to 30 are especially good days to travel because most locals are staying at home with family.
Jan. 31 to Feb 2 will be an incredibly busy long weekend around the country, as local families go traveling around and then rush to get back to the cities.
When Will Attractions Be Open/Closed?
Now let’s get down to some specific places and cover when they will be open or closed during the Lunar New Year Holiday.
For any attractions that I don’t mention below, it’s best to check their holiday hours on their website, GoogleMaps, or contact them directly to ask.
Also read my guide to famous attractions across Taiwan which are currently closed for renovations.
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Taipei 101
Like most department stores in Taipei, Taipei 101 Shopping Center (including Taipei 101 Observatory!) will usually remains open every day of Chinese New Year.
On New Year’s Eve (Jan 28 in 2025), the Taipei 101 Shipping Center hours are usually reduced to 11 AM to 6 PM (instead of the usual 11 AM to 9:30 PM). The Taipei 101 Observatory hours will be reduced to 10 AM to 6 PM (instead of the usual 10 AM to 9 PM).
On New Year’s Day, both will go back to normal opening hours.
It’s best to double check, as these times may vary slightly each year. Book your observatory tickets here, read about the thrilling Skyline 460 experience, and read my guide to visiting Taipei 101.
Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall
CKS Memorial Hall is fine to visit any day of the year. The large square has public access, so you can always enter it to admire the two classical Chinese buildings (National Theater and National Concert Hall), blue and white memorial building, Liberty Arch (photo above), and ponds there.
In early February, it’s even possible to see cherry blossoms and plum blossoms around the ponds.
As for the changing of the guards ceremony, it usually takes place every day, every hour on the hour from 9 AM to 5PM in the square just in front of the hall.
However, they usually don’t do it on NYE (Jan 28) and NYD (Jan 29) The museum inside will also usually takes a break on these two days.
National Palace Museum
National Palace Museum usually usually closes for one day on Lunar New Year’s Eve (Jan 28) but opens to the public as normal on New Year’s Day (Jan 29).
While the museum usually closes every Monday, if the Monday is a national holiday (for example a long weekend), then it remains open. This means that it will be open with normal hours on Monday, Jan. 27, because that will be a national holiday.
Taipei Children’s Amusement Park
Similar to the previous entry, Taipei Children’s Amusement Park will be closed on New Year’s Eve (Jan 28) and open with normal hours on other days of the holiday. That includes Monday the 27th, even though it’s usually closed on Mondays, because that will be a national holiday.
Expect normal crowds – while many families will be outside of Taipei for the holidays, some of them do still stay in Taipei and are looking for things to do. You can buy tickets online here.
Maokong Gondola and Taipei Zoo
Almost exactly like the previous two entries, Maokong Gondola and Taipei Zoo will usually close for one day on Lunar New Year’s Eve and remain open as normal on other days.
Likewise, even though Maokong Gondola usually closes on Mondays, it should remain open on Monday, Jan 27 because that will be a national holiday. Taipei Zoo doesn’t close on normal Mondays.
Beitou Hot Spring
Late January weather tends to be cold and sometimes wet in Taipei (see a Taipei monthly temperature a rain chart here). Soaking in thermal hot springs is the best antidote!
Most of the hot spring spas in Beitou Hot Spring area are run by hotels, which means they are open every day of the year. I recommend Spring City Resort – save money by buying your tickets online first.
Only Beitou Public Hot Spring usually closes for two days: New Year’s Eve (Jan 28) and New Year’s Day (Jan 29).
As for other attractions in Beitou, the number of days they close for varies. For example, Beitou Hot Spring Museum and Beitou Public Library usually close NYE, NYD, and the next two days, while Thermal Valley usually closes NYE and NYD only.
Also keep in mind that most attractions in Beitou close every Monday. As for Monday the 27th, I’m not sure whether each spot will choose to stay open or close.
Other Things to Do During CNY in Taipei
Besides the above-mentioned attractions which will be open most days, there are many (mostly free!) things to do in Taipei during Chinese New Year.
Watch Lion & Dragon Dancing
On New Year’s Day, you can see dragon and lion dancing at a few locations in Taipei. The best one is at Grand Hyatt Hotel (book rooms here) near Taipei 101. This usually takes places at 11 AM on Chinese New Year Day (Jan 29) and is free for the public.
It starts with firecrackers and dragon dancing in front of the hotel, then moves into the lobby for the lion dancing (above photo). This is an excellent activity for kids, and the lions usually throw candies around.
Dayeh Takashimaya Department Store in Shilin also usually has a lion dancing event. It usually starts at 10:30 AM on the first floor. It’s too early for any announcement yet, but watch their Facebook page for announcements in the weeks before LNY or contact them there if you really need to know. Here’s the 2025 event page.
Honghui Plaza in Xinzhuang, New Taipei City will also have lion dancing at 11 AM on Jan 29. Here’s the event link.
Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall will have lion dancing rom 4-5 PM on January 30.
In 2025, there will also be lion dancing at Ximending Red House on Friday, January 31 at 3 PM. Red House will also hold a LNY craft market from Jan 30 to Feb 2. See this post for more information.
Last but not least, Zhulinshan Guanyin Temple (竹林山觀音寺) in Linkou, New Taipei will have a huge LNY carnival from Jan 29 to Feb 1. This will include lion dancing on Jan 30 at 10:10 AM. Here’s a schedule of all the events.
The last lion dancing performance I’m aware of is at Xiangti Avenue Plaza (香堤大道廣場, near Taipei 101) at 2 PM on Feb. 1.
Enjoy the Lantern Festival
Although the official date of Lantern Festival doesn’t come till the 15th day of the year (Feb 12 in 2025), some festivities begin even before Lunar New Year.
Lantern Festival has three major components in Taiwan. The first is beautiful lantern displays in every city across the country. The dates for each city are different – some start before LNY, some around LNY, and some around Lantern Festival. Some of those may start in late January in 2025.
Most last for several weeks. See my Lantern Festival Guide for the exact dates in every city. I usually update the article with this year’s dates once they are announced (1-2 months in advance).
Second, every year will host a national event in a different city. In 2025, this will be in in Taoyuan city, near the HSR station, from Feb. 12 to 23.
Third, the Pingxi Sky Lantern Festival, where hundreds of lanterns are released in unison, is usually on two different days around Lantern Festival (one in Pingxi, one in Shifen). In 2025, that will be on February 8 and 12, respectively. See this organized trip to the event on KKday.
Because 2025 will be the year of the snake, expect lots of snake lanterns.
Cherry Blossom Viewing
Cherry blossoms season in Taiwan lasts from late January to early April. No matter when Lunar New Year falls, there’s a good chance you’ll be able to spot cherry blossoms somewhere in or near Taipei.
In late January, they will be just starting in only a few locations around the city.
To find the best spots and their usual blooming times, see my guide to cherry blossom locations in Taipei and around Taiwan.
Go Hiking
For anyone interested in hiking, there are plenty of hiking trails in and around Taipei to enjoy during Chinese New Year (besides the most famous hike in Taipei, Elephant Mountain!)
You’ll want to plan this day by day – February tends to be cold, gray, and sometimes rainy, which isn’t exactly inspiring weather for hiking. But on clear days, it can be fine enough to want to hit the trails.
Visit Temples
Temples are one of the few places that will actually be busy on Lunar New Year Day (Jan 29). That’s because many Taiwanese visit their local temple on NYD to pray for prosperity and good luck in the year to come.
Longshan Temple and other popular ones will be bustling, so it’s a great time to visit them. As for other days of the holiday, temples will maintain normal opening hours.
Riding YouBikes
YouBikes don’t have holiday schedules. These public shared bikes are available around the clock every day of the year.
Before you go, make sure to read my guide to renting YouBikes in Taipei so you can learn about how to rent them with or without a Taiwan SIM card.
Shopping and Dining During LNY
Will you be able to find food during Chinese New Year? Yes, but your options will be more limited. The same thing goes for shopping. Let’s take a closer look.
Department Stores & Other Shops
Most department stores in Taiwan stay open virtually every day of the year. Usually they will have reduced hours on Lunar New Year’s Eve and then open as normal from New Year’s Day.
In fact, to entice shoppers to spend their 紅包 (hong bao or red envelope) money and New Year’s bonuses, many department stores even offer special sales and promotions during Chinese New Year.
However, most regular stores will take one day or a few days’ break for Lunar New Year. This is especially the case for smaller, family-owned businesses, simply because they want to spend some time with their families. It will depend on the shop – some will close for the whole holiday, while some will start to open from Day 2 or 3.
Convenience Stores & Supermarkets
Major convenience store chains in Taiwan like 7-Eleven and FamilyMart never close. Most branches are open 24 hours per day, 365 days per year.
This means that, in a worst case scenario, like you can’t find any restaurant that’s open in Taipei, you can always find something to eat or drink at a convenience store.
The same thing goes for major supermarket chains like Carrefour or Wellcome.
Night Markets and Restaurants
All major night markets in Taipei are open every night of the year. These include Shilin, Raohe, Ningxia, Tonghua, Nanjichang, and Huaxi night market.
However, individual vendors in the night markets may choose to take a break for a few days. So if you visit any night market on New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day, you can expect it to quieter than usual, with only some of the stalls open.
The same thing goes for local restaurants and bars. Most will be closed on NYE and NYD. Then they will gradually start to reopen from Day 2 on. If you plan to eat out, it’s best to choose a restaurant first, then call before you go to find out whether they will be open.
Some international or expat-run bars or restaurants will stay open every day during Lunar New Year to cater to expats in Taiwan. For example, we’ve dined at GB Brewery (Gordon Biersch) and On Tap pub on Lunar New Year’s Day, when almost everything else seemed closed.
Traditional New Year’s Markets
For traditional daytime markets selling items for Lunar New Year, such as Dihua Street and Nanmen Market, it’s best to visit them in the 2 to 3 weeks before Lunar New Year.
That’s when they will be packed with people, decorated with lanterns, and selling all kinds of goods and foods for Chinese New Year. Weekends are especially packed, to the point where it’s not enjoyable. Try to go on weekdays or in the morning on weekends.
Once Lunar New Year’s Eve hits, Dihua Street will turn quiet and everything will close for several days.
See my guide to Dihua Street for more info.
Thanks a lot for this writeup, very helpful!
Thank you very much for all the details. Happy to found your blog 🙂
Soooo helpful. Thank you so much! More power on your blog!
Oh no! I’m getting there on the 25th with two little kids… Hopefully we will have things to do… and things to eat other that 7-11, even though they are awesome.
Most restaurants will close from around Jan 28 to 30. But even during those days, you can still find a few.
Will Yangmingshan, particularly the flower location opens for visiting on 27th?
It’s a national park, so it’s open every day of the year.
Thank you so so much !!
Planning to visit this Feb 6, 2025. Thanks for the tips.