The Chinese New Year celebration in San Francisco San Francisco is one of the few remaining night-illuminated Parades in North America and the biggest parade celebrating the lunar new year outside of Asia. It was started in the 1860s by the Chinese in San Francisco to educate the community about their culture.

Over 100 units will participate and entertain the many hundreds of thousands of people who come to watch it on the street. You can also watch it on television on KTVU Fox 2 or KTSF Channel 26 from 6 to 8 PM on Saturday, February 23rd.

See the newly crowned Miss Chinatown and her court and the spectacular 288-foot long Golden Dragon—it takes a team of over 180 men and women to carry the Golden Dragon through the streets of San Francisco.

Chinese New Year Community Street Fair
Immerse yourself in the sights and sounds of San Francisco’s exhilarating Chinatown during one of the community’s most exciting times of the year. You will find over 120 booths and concessions making this a shopper’s paradise.

Saturday, February 23rd from 10 AM to 4:30 PM
Sunday, February 24th from 9 AM to 5 PM

Grant Avenue from California to Broadway
Sacramento, Washington, Jackson & Pacific between Stockton & Kearny

Chinese New Year Parade
Saturday, February 23rd beginning at 5:15 PM
The parade starts off at 2nd and Market Streets, goes around Union Square and ends at Kearny Street & Columbus Avenue

Details, a map, and FAQs about the parade can be found here.

Gung Hay Fat Choy!