Lion dance in Boston's Chinatown during Chinese New Year, for the Lunar New Year 2027 Boston events guide

Lunar New Year 2027 in Boston: Parade, Quincy Festival and Events Guide

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Featured image: A lion dance during Chinese New Year in Boston’s Chinatown. Photo: Boston (talk) via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0).

Lunar New Year 2027 falls on Saturday, Feb. 6, opening the Year of the Goat, and Greater Boston’s celebrations will stretch from the Lantern Festival on Feb. 20 into early March. This guide to Lunar New Year events in Boston explains what the major organizers held in 2026, what has and has not been announced for 2027, and where to eat in Chinatown, Quincy and beyond during the holiday.

As of Oct. 23, 2026, none of the big public celebrations below had posted 2027 dates. We list each one with its 2026 date, time and place so you know what to expect, and we will update this guide as organizers announce details.

Key Lunar New Year 2027 dates

  • New Year’s Eve: Friday, Feb. 5, 2027, the traditional night for a family reunion dinner.
  • New Year’s Day: Saturday, Feb. 6, 2027.
  • Lantern Festival: Saturday, Feb. 20, 2027, the 15th day of the first lunar month, which closes the season.

The Smithsonian describes 2027 as the Year of the Fire Goat, also translated as Ram or Sheep, and notes that it will be followed by the Year of the Monkey. The holiday is known as Chunjie or Spring Festival in China, Tết in Vietnam and Seollal in Korea, and different communities may follow different zodiac traditions.

Chinatown Lion Dance Parade and Cultural Village

Boston’s best-known celebration is the Chinatown lion dance parade, which usually takes place on a Sunday a few weeks after the holiday. In 2026 it was held on Sunday, March 1. It began at Phillips Square at 10:30 a.m. and wound through neighborhood streets until about 3 p.m., with lion dance teams stopping at businesses along the way.

On the same day, Chinatown Main Street hosted a Cultural Village at the China Trade Center, 2 Boylston St., from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., with performances, music, calligraphy, crafts and gifts. The Pao Arts Center also offered art activities and workshops.

The City of Boston’s traffic advisory for the 2026 parade restricted parking all day on parts of Beach Street, Harrison Avenue, Hudson Street, Oxford Street and Tyler Street. Expect similar rules in 2027 and plan to take the Orange Line to Chinatown or Tufts Medical Center, or the Red Line to South Station.

Quincy Lunar New Year Festival

Quincy Asian Resources Inc. (QARI) organizes one of the largest celebrations in Massachusetts. Its 38th annual festival took place Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at North Quincy High School, 316 Hancock St. Admission was free. The program opened with a lion dance at noon, followed by cultural performances, arts and crafts, and food vendors. QARI said nearly 70 vendors took part and that it hosted thousands of attendees. The 2026 festival had a posted snow date of March 1, so check QARI’s site for a 2027 snow date before you go.

North Quincy station on the Red Line is the closest T stop. Several restaurants a short walk from the high school are covered in our Quincy and Malden Asian restaurants guide.

Museum celebrations

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. The MFA held its 2026 celebration on Thursday, Feb. 19, from 5 to 10 p.m., during its Third Thursday program with $5 minimum, pay-what-you-wish admission. The evening featured the museum’s Chinese, Korean and Vietnamese collections, lion dances, Chinese folk dance, a Vietnamese martial arts demonstration, lantern-making and a bilingual story time. Community groups including the Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center and the Asian Task Force Against Domestic Violence had tables in the courtyard.

Peabody Essex Museum, Salem. PEM marked the 2026 holiday on Feb. 21 with a zodiac scavenger hunt, red envelope decorating, a lion dance, and self-guided visits to Yin Yu Tang, an 18th-century house from southeastern China that was moved to the museum. Tickets started at $10.

Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge. Artist Zhonghe (Elena) Li led a $15 Chinese paper-cutting and lantern workshop on Feb. 22, 2026, with advance registration required.

Night markets and restaurant specials

In Somerville, Bow Market held a free Lunar New Year Night Market on Feb. 19, 2026, with 11 Asian American and Pacific Islander makers and lion dances by NüWa. Participating vendors offered specials, including pandan mochi from Viet Citron. Viet Citron also runs a restaurant in Burlington, which is listed in our local business directory.

Many restaurants add holiday menus, banquet packages or whole-fish and dumpling platters for the reunion dinner. Popular places for family-style meals include the dim sum halls and noodle shops in our Boston Chinatown restaurants guide. In the South End, Myers + Chang serves Taiwanese and pan-Asian dishes. North of the city, Sichuan Gourmet in Burlington and Gene’s Chinese Flatbread Cafe in Woburn are both in our directory. Reservations for New Year’s Eve, Friday, Feb. 5, are likely to fill early.

Additional details

Lunar New Year became an official City of Boston holiday in 2023, according to WBUR. Some suburban districts, including Lexington and Acton-Boxborough, have closed schools for the holiday. Because Feb. 6, 2027 is a Saturday, families should check their district calendar for any related closings.

Lion dances use loud drums, cymbals and firecrackers, so bring ear protection for small children. Firecracker smoke can linger on narrow Chinatown streets.

For more seasonal events from the holidays through Marathon Monday, see our Boston local guides hub. For more on Asian community groups that run these festivals, see our Asian community resources guide.

Sources

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