The United States — like many countries in Latin America, Europe, Africa, and Australasia — marks the start of the new year on January 1. It’s a time to make resolutions and an excuse to let loose and celebrate with big gatherings of friends and family members. However, it’s also an opportunity to think about those cultures that follow a different calendar and celebrate the new year at a different time — not least because, as travelers, it’s often a highly rewarding time to visit. Check out these six fascinating New Year’s celebrations that don’t take place on January 1.
Chunjie
2025 will be the Year of the Snake, and the billions of people who live in countries that follow the lunisolar calendar, such as China, will welcome the new year on January 29. Chunjie is also known as the Spring Festival, which lasts for two weeks and celebrates the end of the coldest days of winter and the beginning of spring.
Some of the traditions that are associated with Chunjie are designed to keep a demonic beast called Nian at bay. This mythical creature — which looks similar to a lion with a horn on its head — languishes in the depths of the ocean for most of the year, but on the last day of the lunar year, it comes ashore in search of people and livestock to feast upon. According to tradition, Nian is frightened of firecrackers and anything that’s red, which is why you see plenty of both at this time of year. Red envelopes (hong bao in Mandarin; lai see in Cantonese) containing money are also exchanged. The amount enclosed is important – eight is considered lucky, while four is the opposite.
Tết Nguyên Đán
Marking the Lunar New Year is a big deal in Vietnam, where their version of the Spring Festival is known as Tết Nguyên Đán, usually shortened to Tết. In 2025, it will take place from January 28 to February 3. In the past, when the country was a largely agricultural society, this would have been an important period of rest and recovery after the toil of the harvest and before the next crop had to be sown.
These days, for many in Vietnam, Tết is a chance to reconnect with family and remember those who have passed. During the festival, you’ll see a lot of red and yellow decorations, as these colors signify fortune. Houses are given a thorough clean in the days leading up to Tết, but on the day itself, no one picks up a broom lest they sweep away good luck.
Rosh Hashanah
Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year) falls in late September or early October, at the start of the month of Tishrei. In 2025, this important holiday will take place from September 22 to 24. It’s a time for believers to reflect and take stock, as it ushers in the Ten Days of Repentance that lead up to Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.
Several traditional practices are associated with Rosh Hashanah, including the blowing of the shofar (a hollowed-out ram’s horn used for rituals) during services at the synagogue. Jews consume certain foods for good luck — believers dip challah bread and apples into honey and eat them after reciting a blessing. Another significant ritual is to toss crumbs of bread into water as a symbol of casting off sin.
Losar
Losar takes place in Tibet at the end of winter. The 2025 celebration will occur from February 28 to March 14, though the first three days are the most significant. It’s customary to make offerings at monasteries, shrines, and stupas. Celebrants also don new outfits, exchange gifts, and greet each other with the words “tashi delek,” which mean “good luck.”
Tibetans enjoy a New Year’s feast that includes a vegetable soup known as guthuk. Items are hidden inside dough balls inside the soup, and those who find wood or rice inside are said to have a promising outlook for the upcoming year. Celebrations also include firecrackers, which are thrown to scare away evil spirits. They wrap up with the Butter Lamp Festival, a lively affair featuring dancing and music at the temple.
Songkran
Theravada New Year is a Buddhist celebration that follows the rice harvest. It is marked in varying ways across Thailand (where it’s called Songkran), Cambodia, Laos, and several other countries in South and Southeast Asia. Dates vary slightly from country to country, but in Thailand the holiday takes place from April 13 to 15 each year.
Once a genteel affair, these days Songkran is characterized by a lively water festival — welcome news for travelers who wish to join in at a time of year when temperatures often rise considerably. However, there’s a serious message behind all the fun — the action of splashing water represents cleansing, purification, and renewal. In addition, ceremonies take place at pagodas and monasteries, while young people visit their elders to show respect.
Yennayer
In parts of North Africa, Amazigh New Year, which falls on January 12, has only recently become an official public holiday, but the celebration of Yennayer to round out the agrarian year goes back centuries. Traditionally, bonfires are lit, and a feast is prepared by members of each Berber community, with foods used to represent the abundance of the local harvest.
In Morocco’s High Atlas mountains, for instance, a dish called tagoula is often served. It consists of boiled corn or barley flavored with olive oil and honey. The chef buries the pit from a date within it, which is considered a good omen for the person who bites on it. Berkoukes (a dish similar to cous cous) and irkmen (a thick soup of fava beans and wheat) are popular alternatives. According to tradition, no one should leave the table without a full belly, as this means there will be no famine or shortages in the upcoming year.
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