Hong Kong Public Holidays 2026: Calendar, Dates & Celebrations

We’ve rounded up Hong Kong’s public holidays and long weekends for 2025 in an easy-to-understand guide. Use this year-round calendar of Hong Kong’s public holidays and long weekends to plan your trips. Let’s make 2025 a fulfilling year!

Hong Kong Public Holidays 2026 Calendar

Hong Kong has two types of public holidays: Statutory Holidays (15 days, for most employees) and General Public Holidays (17 days, for government, banks, and many private sectors). 2026 adds a new Statutory Holiday—Easter Monday—making it easier to plan long trips.

List of Hong Kong Public Holidays and Long Weekends 2026

We’ve compiled a table of Hong Kong’s public holidays and long weekends for 2026. Please note this when traveling to Hong Kong.

Closures & Service Adjustments on HK Public Holidays

Government & Essential Services

• Government offices, banks, and post offices are fully closed on all public holidays . ATMs work 24/7, and online banking is available, but in-person bank services stop—withdraw cash in advance if needed.
• Public hospitals and emergency services (ambulances, police, fire) operate normally. Private clinics are usually closed, so save non-urgent medical needs for weekdays .
• Utility services (water, electricity) are uninterrupted—report emergencies via 24-hour hotlines (e.g., Water Supplies Department: 2824 5000) .

Shops & Attractions

• Big malls (Harbour City, Causeway Bay Plaza) and convenience stores (7-Eleven, Circle K) stay open—many have extended hours (10am–10pm) on holidays .
• Small local shops (especially in cultural districts like Chinatown or Little India) may close for 1–2 days during their community’s main festival (e.g., Lunar New Year for Chinese shops) .
• Museums: Most LCSD museums are open (10am–7pm or 9pm) but closed on their regular weekly day off (e.g., Tuesdays for Hong Kong Museum of History) unless the holiday falls on that day . The first two days of Lunar New Year are closed for most museums .

Transport

• MTR, buses, and trams run on holiday schedules—fewer frequencies than weekdays but still reliable . On major holidays (Lunar New Year, National Day), services may extend late (until midnight or 1am).
• Cross-boundary transport (Shenzhen Bay Port, Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge) adds extra services during peak holidays to handle mainland travel demand .
• Road closures: Expect temporary closures near cemeteries (Ching Ming, Chung Yeung) and festival venues (Marina Bay for National Day, Tsim Sha Tsui for Lunar New Year parade)—use public transport instead of driving.

January 1 (Wed): New Year's Day

It’s New Year’s Day on the Gregorian calendar. From New Year’s Eve through January 1, spectacular countdown events take place. Because Hong Kong places greater emphasis on Lunar New Year than on the Gregorian New Year, many shops and restaurants are open as usual on this day. In front of the Hong Kong Cultural Centre, acrobatic performances featuring colorful dragons and lion dances are staged, known as the “Dragon & Lion Dance Festival.”

Chinese Spring Festival 2025 | Yokohama Official Visitors Guide ...

January 29 (Wed) ~ 31 (Fri): Spring Festival (Lunar New Year)

Get ready for Lunar New Year's Day! The date shifts annually, making each celebration uniquely special. You'll discover delightful traditions like feasting on "Poon Choi" (Pun Choi), an auspicious dish reminiscent of Japan's Osechi, and the joyful custom of distributing "Lai See" (Lai Si) — lucky money envelopes! And in Hong Kong, a truly enchanting New Year's custom is to explore the vibrant flower markets that bloom about one to two weeks before the big day, where you can pick out beautiful, auspicious flowers and trees to bring good fortune home!

Friday, April 4: Qingming Festival

This day celebrates Qingming, one of the 24 solar terms, and falls on the 15th day after the spring equinox. It’s an important holiday to honor ancestors—much like Japan’s Obon—when many families and relatives come together to visit ancestral graves, clean and weed the tombs, and then make offerings. It is also known as “Saomu Festival” (Sao Mu Jie).

April 18 (Fri)–April 21 (Mon): Easter & Easter Monday

Known as Good Friday, it is observed on the Friday two days before Easter Sunday, the day when Christ was crucified.

Easter is a major celebration that commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ on the third day after he died on the cross. It is observed as a public holiday from Good Friday through the Monday after Easter, so in 2025 it spans four days: Friday, April 18, to Monday, April 21.

May 1 (Thu): Labor Day / May Day

Every year on May 1; if it falls on a Sunday, the following day is observed as a substitute holiday. It’s a day when workers come together to advocate for their rights, with roots in strikes by American workers. In 1999, the second year after Hong Kong’s handover from Britain to China, it became a public holiday in Hong Kong as well, in line with the rest of China. Traffic restrictions may be implemented, so please take care when heading out.

May 5 (Mon): Buddha's Birthday

It’s Shakyamuni Buddha’s Birthday. The date usually falls on a day from the last week of April into May, and in Hong Kong—where many Buddhists live—it’s customary to visit temples and pour water over Buddha statues. Various celebratory events take place at temples across Hong Kong, with the ceremonies at Po Lin Monastery on Lantau Island, home to one of the world’s largest Buddha statues, being especially famous.

Saturday, May 31: Dragon Boat Festival

Dragon Boat Festival - Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art

The fifth day of the fifth month in the lunar calendar. It usually falls around mid to late June, and in 2025 it’s Saturday, May 31. The origins of this day go back to the State of Chu and the poet-statesman Qu Yuan, with festivals held to appease the spirit of Qu Yuan, who is said to have taken his own life. Across Hong Kong there’s a custom of eating Chinese rice dumplings wrapped in bamboo leaves, known as “zong (joong).” The day is also called the Dragon Boat Festival, and hand-rowed boat races are held in many places.

Tuesday, July 1: Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Establishment Day

This day commemorates Hong Kong’s handover from the United Kingdom on July 1, 1997, when it became a Special Administrative Region of China. A commemorative ceremony is held at the Handover Monument in front of the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai, the heart of the city, and spectacular fireworks displays and ceremonies light up locations across Hong Kong.

October 1 (Wed): National Day

China’s National Day falls on October 1 every year. It dates back to October 1, 1949, when the founding of the People’s Republic of China was proclaimed in Tiananmen Square. In China, this period becomes a roughly week-long major holiday, while in Hong Kong only the day itself is a public holiday. Over Victoria Harbour, large-scale commemorative fireworks are launched, and a grand commemorative maritime parade is held.

Tuesday, October 7: The day after the Mid-Autumn Festival

It's the day after the Mid-Autumn Festival, one of the three major traditional festivals celebrated across Chinese-speaking regions. On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, families gather to share a delightful meal, gaze at the luminous full moon, and savor delicious mooncakes, all while wishing for their family's happiness. Beyond the enchanting lantern carnivals lighting up various towns, a truly spectacular event unfolds in Tai Hang: the "Mid-Autumn Fire Dragon Dance." Imagine a colossal "Fire Dragon," intricately crafted from countless burning incense sticks, majestically parading through the streets – it's an unforgettable sight!

October 29 (Wed): Double Ninth Festival

Observed on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month—Wednesday, October 29 in 2025—it’s also called the Double Ninth (Chongyang) Festival, since the number “9” repeats, and in yin–yang philosophy it’s a “double yang” day. Said to have been celebrated for more than 2,000 years, families head out to hike, enjoy the scenery, and savor steamed sweets. Like the Qingming Festival, it also carries a memorial meaning, so families visit graves together. In recent years, it has also become established as a day to honor the elderly.

Thursday, December 25: Christmas

December 25th is a day celebrated worldwide as the birth of Jesus Christ, known in Chinese as 'Sheng Dan Jie'. While Hong Kong is home to a vibrant community of Buddhist and Taoist followers, with Christians making up around 10% of the population, its long history under British rule means Christmas is joyfully observed as a public holiday. Prepare to be enchanted! Beyond the dazzling illuminations, a spectacular array of events unfolds, making it a truly grand and unforgettable celebration.

December 26 (Fri): The weekday after Christmas (Boxing Day)

In Hong Kong, the first weekday after Christmas is a public holiday known as Boxing Day. It’s a traditional holiday still observed in the UK and many former British colonies, originally designated for people who couldn’t spend Christmas with their families because they were working. The name comes from the day churches opened boxes of Christmas gifts collected as donations for the poor. Just like in the UK, shops across Hong Kong roll out major sales on this day.

Smart Travel & Holiday Tips for Hong Kong 2026

Invest Hong Kong - YouTube

Book Early for Key Events

• Fireworks views: For National Day (Oct 1) and Lunar New Year Eve fireworks, book waterfront restaurants (like The Peninsula Hong Kong) or hotel rooms with harbour views 2–3 months in advance .
• Theme parks: Disneyland and Ocean Park sell out fast on holidays—buy tickets online 1 month early to skip on-site queues.
• Cross-boundary trips: Book ferry/train tickets to Macau or Shenzhen 1–2 weeks in advance, especially during Lunar New Year.

Use Public Transport Wisely

• Avoid driving on Ching Ming and Chung Yeung—roads near cemeteries are closed or gridlocked . Take special buses or MTR to these areas.
• On Lunar New Year parade day (Feb 17), take the MTR to Tsim Sha Tsui Station—roads around the parade route are closed to cars .
• Get an Octopus Card: It’s the easiest way to pay for MTR, buses, and even convenience store purchases—available at MTR stations and 7-Eleven.

Join Local Traditions

• Lunar New Year: Visit Victoria Park’s flower market for auspicious blooms, or join a family’s “open house” (many locals welcome guests for snacks like candied fruits) .
• Buddha’s Birthday: Participate in the bath-the-Buddha ceremony at Chi Lin Nunnery—no need to be Buddhist, just show respect by dressing modestly .
• Mid-Autumn Festival: Buy a lantern from Temple Street and join the waterfront moon-gazing crowds—bring a picnic with mooncakes and tea.

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