In 2027, Chinese New Year falls on Saturday 6 February and opens the Year of the Goat. In Bangkok, the celebrations centre on Chinatown, along Yaowarat Road: the street is closed to cars and becomes pedestrian, with stages, food stalls, dragon parades and lion dances, while the neighbourhood's Chinese temples fill with worshippers praying for the new year. The Yaowarat festival is organised by the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA), the Ministry of Tourism and Sports, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) and Samphanthawong district. The 2027 programme has not yet been published as of October 2026; the details below follow the 2025 programme, the last full edition, as the 2026 festival was cancelled during the mourning period for Queen Mother Sirikit. To explore the neighbourhood outside the festival, see our [Chinatown guide](/fr/articles/chinatown-bangkok-yaowarat).
Highlights
The Yaowarat festival
In 2025, it ran over two days, 29 and 30 January, from noon to midnight, on Yaowarat Road closed to traffic. Two main stages hosted the performances, one at Odeon Circle and the other at Ratchawong intersection, and a market of food stalls was set up at Chalermburi. In 2024, the festival also lasted two days, 10 and 11 February.
The opening ceremony
Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn usually presides over the opening of the festival in front of the commemorative arch at Odeon Circle, the gateway to Chinatown. In both 2024 and 2025, the ceremony began at 17:00 on the first day of the festivities; in 2025, it was broadcast live on Channel 9 MCOT HD.
Dragons, lions and red lanterns
The festival includes a large dragon parade and lion dances. Red lanterns, symbols of prosperity believed to ward off bad luck, decorate the shops and streets of the neighbourhood. In 2026, despite the festival's cancellation, TAT lit up Yaowarat Road, from Odeon Circle to Chaloem Buri intersection, from 7 February to 1 March, every evening from 18:00 to 23:00.
Wat Mangkon Kamalawat
Founded in 1871 as Wat Leng Noei Yi, it is Bangkok's main Chinese Buddhist temple, of the Mahayana tradition; King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) gave it its Thai name, "Dragon Lotus Temple". At New Year, its courtyards and halls fill with worshippers and incense smoke. Entry is free.
The Chinese shrines
During the festival, Chinatown's temples and shrines welcome many worshippers, who come to ask the deities for blessings for the year and, for those whose sign clashes with that of the year, to perform a rite to ward off bad luck.
Wat Traimit
At the end of Yaowarat Road, near Odeon Circle, this temple houses a 5.5-tonne solid gold Buddha and a museum dedicated to the history of the Chinese in Thailand. Our [Wat Traimit](/fr/attractions/wat-traimit-bouddha-d-or) page details opening hours and tickets.
Infos pratiques
Tips
Thai-Chinese families observe three days: "shopping day" (wan chai), Thursday 4 February 2027, "offering day" to ancestors and deities (wan wai), Friday 5 February, then "outing day" (wan thiao), Saturday 6 February. The public festival takes place over two days set by the organisers: watch for BMA and TAT announcements from January 2027. As the street is closed, leave taxis and tuk-tuks some distance away and finish on foot. Wear red to blend into the atmosphere, and closed shoes: the crowd is very dense in the evening. Keep some cash in baht for the stalls. Information as observed in October 2026.
How to get there
Yaowarat Road, Samphanthawong district, Bangkok. MRT Wat Mangkon (Blue Line), in the heart of Chinatown, or MRT Hua Lamphong, a few minutes' walk from Odeon Circle and Wat Traimit. Express boat on the [Chao Phraya River](/fr/attractions/fleuve-chao-phraya-bangkok), Ratchawong pier (N5), then a 10-minute walk to Yaowarat Road.
Nearby
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