No matter who you are or where you’re from, the oldest and most important festival in the Chinese calendar offers a chance to celebrate life, positive energy and good fortune. Spring clean the house, set off some firecrackers and celebrate with loved ones.
This Chinese New Year falls on 26 January and kicks off two weeks of celebrations so there's plenty going on. The date changes each year as it's based on the lunar calendar. The festival closes with Teng Chieh, the lantern festival, on the full moon around 15 days later.
The Chinese Arch in Liverpool’s Chinatown is the place to celebrate Chinese in style each February. Dancing dragons, firecrackers and great food are all on offer.
Chinatown is transformed into an Oriental wonderland each year, with dragon and lion dances, Kung Fu demonstrations, dancing, stalls and workshops plus fireworks and a parade.
The City Museum and Art Gallery will mark the start of the Year of the Dragon on 21 January with some fun, arty activities for kids, including a special dragon-themed trail.
Discover the cultural significance of Chinese New Year with family-friendly fun at the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, on 18 February.
The London Chinese Cultural Centre also organises Chinese film screenings and arts performances throughout the city.
More than 300,000 people took to the streets of the capital to celebrate Chinese New Year in 2010, and the party's expected to be even bigger this year. Visit Trafalgar Square on 23 January, for an afternoon of traditional and contemporary Chinese arts live on stage. There'll also be performance art on Shaftesbury Avenue, fireworks in Leicester Square, and lion displays in Chinatown.
Medway celebrations are set to transform Chatham High Street with traditional Chinese dance on 21 and 22 January. Enter the Chinese costumer competition and have a go at Lion Dancing. The event is the third largest of its kind in the UK.
Birmingham’s Chinese quarter celebrate in style each year at the Arcadian Centre, and 2012 promises to be no different. The largest celebration of its kind in the Midlands, the day attracts around 20,000 people.
The town centre is set to host an array of Chinese New Year’s celebrations on 28 January 2012.
And if you can't make it to one of those, but fancy some Far Eastern entertainment, why not book tickets to see the Chinese State Circus in London during April.
Find out more about Chinese New Year and some top places to find Chinese food in the UK. And if you're planning a trip to China in 2012, check out our great range of travel books.
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Last updated January 2012
