Chinese New Year is the biggest Cantonese holiday of the year! Every culture celebrates Lunar New Year a little differently, so here are the activities typically done to prepare for Chinese New Year, particularly Cantonese customs. Many are rooted in superstition, but they also serve as festive traditions that strengthen the connection to our heritage.
1-2 Weeks Before
1. Get a Haircut
Give your hair a fresh trim to tidy up loose ends and say goodbye to any of last year’s misfortunes.
2. Get New Clothes
Here’s an excuse to shop! Purchase new pajamas, underwear, and slippers for a clean outlook head-to-toe on CNY Eve – and a new outfit for the day-of on Chinese New Year. Remember to make sure you have red or pink in your new clothes to bring in extra luck.
3. Prepare 利是
Buy new red envelopes (利是) and get them ready for family visits. Check out your local Asian supermarket or bank who may also be handing out new red envelopes you can use. Only married couples need to give red envelopes to unmarried family members and kids who are younger than you. Business owners or older couples may also prepare red envelopes for their employees or young children they know to wish them luck and health in the new year.
3 Days Before
4. Spring Clean
Perform a deep clean of your house prior to the new year. Dust away those corner ceiling cobwebs and scrub those hard-to-reach areas for a home fit to welcome the Year of the Snake.
On New Years Eve
5. Hang Up 揮春
揮春 are poetic phrases written or printed on decorative, typically red, paper to wish luck and prosperity into existence. They’re hung up around the house in auspicious places that match the phrases. For example, “出入平安” is hung on doors to symbolize leaving and returning to your home safely.
6. Fill Up the Treat Box
Also known as 全盒, Chinese New Year’s Eve is the best time to put this together. Representing a “box of togetherness”, it’s a nice snack box to offer visiting guests during the new year period. Some favorites are candied lotus seeds, melon seeds, and sugared coconut threads, but really any of your favorite snacks and candies can be included in the treat box.
7. Take a Lucky Shower
Wash away the previous year’s lingering bad luck with a pomelo (碌柚) leaf and rind shower. This is one of my absolute favorite traditions, because it smells so divine. You boil pomelo leaves and their rinds in water on the stove until the water is highly scented from the steeped ingredients. Add some cooler water to bring it to your desired temperature and pour it over your body a bit at a time as you shower. If you’re more of a bath person, just pour the pomelo steeped water into your bath.
8. Eat New Years Eve Banquet
The Cantonese culture really revolves around food and Chinese New Year isn’t any different. End the year with a delicious, homemade CNY eve banquet meal. This meal is very special since each dish typically has a distinctly symbolic meaning. Shrimp or lobster is often eaten because the Cantonese word for both sounds like laughter – 蝦 or 龍蝦 (pronounced “ha” or “long ha”). And it’s a beautiful way to wrap up the year, surrounded by family around the dinner table.
How do you prepare for Chinese New Year in your household? Let us know in the comments!