Lunar New Year Traditions Across Asia

Thailand is a popular destination for many this time of year as it offers a break from the cold Beijing winter winds. If you are choosing to spend time on the beaches of Phuket over your holiday, you might be interested to know that Thais call the celebration Trut Chin. It is celebrated by eating kanom keng, a sticky rice cake served in banana leaf cups, and by burning silver and gold paper to wish for a lucrative new year. While the iconic floating lanterns are normally associated with the November festival of Khomi Loi, you might still see a few hopeful people releasing these lovely lights along with the more traditional fireworks.

Cambodia's Lunar New Year celebration, Chaul Chnam Thmey, has a strong Chinese influence, which means that dragon dances and lanterns will still be plentiful and many of the iconic Cambodian temples host fairs that run into the evening. At these, you'll see plenty of street food like Num Kom, a sweet sticky coconut rice wrapped in banana leaves. You can also see these left as offerings on some of the alters.

In Vietnam, the festival lasts for 12 days and is called Tet. Hanoi’s Quang Ba Flower Market is a perfect place to observe Tet preparations as families hustle to purchase branches of peach blossoms and kumquats for their homes and people buy goldfish to release into streams to encourage the kitchen god to smile on them. Herbal baths are also on offer as a purification ritual to clean away the bad luck from the previous year. On the last day of Tet, called Hoá Vàng, expect to see big parties and small fires as all paper and food offerings placed on alters over the past days are burned to honor the families’ ancestors.

In Korea, the Lunar New Year is called Seollal, and, similar to China’s tradition, it is a time for family and honoring the ancestors. In addition to the usual feasting and temple offerings, many will seek to have their saju (fortune) told. Other traditions include staying up to watch the first sunrise for good luck and flying a kite as an act of releasing worries and embracing hope and optimism for the new year.

In Malaysia, a unique tradition is the tossing of Yee Sang (Prosperity Salad), a colorful salad made with raw fish to symbolize abundance, fruit/vegetables like carrots or oranges for gold, and plum sauce for the sweet things in life. As a family, everyone uses their chopsticks to toss the salad high while making wishes. If you want to experience this in Beijing, Mulu is offering a special Yee Sang brunch over Chinese New Year and you can read more details about it here.

Japan no longer officially celebrates Lunar New Year as a public holiday, but some communities still celebrate Koshogatsu or the Little New Year. As the name suggests, this is a more modest affair. It involves making and giving mochi as a treat and having a quiet meal with family, reflecting on wishes for the future.