Major Chinese Events of Year | Chinese Festivals

Guizhou Azalea Festival

Time: April 8-25

Venue: Baihuaping in Bijie Prefecture’s Aianxi County

Origin: A vast stretch of azaleas is found where Qianxi and Dafang counties in Guizhou Province’s Bijie Prefecture share the same boundary. The flowers in the Pudi Azalea Zone of Dafang County and the Jinpo Azalea Zone of Qianxi County are the most famous. There the azalea begins to bloom in March, reaches its full glory in April, and continues into May, so that for three months a year, the heavily wooded place is taken over by a riot of color and becomes a veritable natural flower garden rarely seen anywhere in this world. The Azalea Festival, which was first started in 1993, is an annual event in Guizhou.

What’s On: The opening ceremony, folk art performances by the ethnic Yi, Miao and Buyi people, a lantern show in Qianxi County, bell-ringing dances, dances to the accompaniment of reed pipes, and bull and chicken fights. Tourists are welcome to attend carnivals by a bonfire and tempt their palate with local delicacies.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Qinghai Folk Song Festival

Time: 8th day of the 4th lunar month, 6th day of the 6th lunar month, and 15th of the 7th lunar month.

Venue: Xining, Qinghai

Origin: Hua’er refers to folk songs popular among the ethnic Hui, Dongxiang and Baoan peoples in Qinghai Province. Love is a major theme of such songs, which are characterized by sweet, soul-stirring tunes, rich and varied motifs, and an unmistakable idyllic flavor. After the 5th month according to the Chinese lunar calendar, “hua’er” festivals are held in many places in Qinghai, and local singers take this opportunity to sing their life, labor, love and ideals in a most infatuating way. The folk song festival, which takes place on the 6th day of the 6th lunar month at Lianhuashan, Xining, is so famous that it eventually became an annual weeklong event.

What’s On: During the festival, tens of thousands of Hui, Dongxiang and Baoan folk singers and onlookers gather at Lianhuashan for round after round of singing. Other activities include mountaineering, theatrical performances, trade fairs, and the farewell ceremony.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Wutai Mountain Tourist Month

Time: July 25-August 25 every year

Venue: Taihuai Town, Wutai County, Shanxi Province

Origin: Since ancient times, the Wutai Mountain has been a site of temple fairs. With the passing of time, these temple fairs have gradually evolved into the Wutai Mountain International Tourist Month, which sets the stage for displaying the Wutai Mountain as one of China’s four major Buddhist mountain sanctuaries and its wealth of ancient sites and cultural artifacts.

What’s On: Large-scale Buddhist ritualistic ceremonies, folk art activities, and a large mule and horse fair. During the month, the entire mountain is enshrouded in the mystery of a religious atmosphere, as monks from all over the country gather at Taihuai Town performing Buddhist rites to save the souls of the dead and chanting Buddhist sutras. The event gives the traveler an excellent opportunity to visit the architecture of the cluster of temples and monasteries on the Wutai Mountain, and learn something about local habits and customs.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nadam Tourist Festival

Time: Around July 15 every year

Venue: Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region

Origin: In Mongolian the word “nadam” means “amusement and entertainment.” The Nadam Festival is a traditional occasion for Mongols to get together for a few days of festivity. In the past, herdsmen in the region gathered in summer to sacrifice to celestial beings and amuse themselves in celebration of a thriving animal husbandry. Later, the Nadam Festival has become a ten-day event at the banner or sumu level during the summer-autumn interregnum. Now the festival has acquired a new name, “Nadam Grassland Tourist Festival”. What’s On: Horse racing, archery, and wrestling; the Mani Festival, Yuan-dynasty imperial banquets, wedding in the ethnic Erdos style, sacrificial rituals at Genghis Khan’s mausoleum, tours of the Hot Spring Forest, Mongolian folklore show; and business activities.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yunnan Yi Torch Festival

Time: The 24th –26th days of the 6th lunar month.

Venue: Shucun Town of the Lunan Yi Autonomous County, and the city of Chuxiong in the Chuxiong Yi Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province

Origin: According to a legend among the Yi people in Lunan, once upon a time there lived a demon king who terrorized the local people. During an uprising the local people bound torches to the horns and hind legs of a herd of goats and eliminated the demon king by lighting the torches and driving the goats into its lair. On the 24th day of the 6th lunar month the local people lit torches for an entire night’s merry-making in celebration of the victory.

What’s On: Archery, horse racing, bull fights, and wrestling. Torch-holding dances around a bonfire at night.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Qingdao Int’l Beer Festival

Time: Mid-August every year.

Venue: Qingdao, Shandong Province

Origin: The Qingdao beer is renowned all over the world. The Qingdao International Beer Festival was first held in 1991, and has since become an annual event, which takes place at the Qingdao Tourist Resort.

What’s On: Full-length variety shows, parades of artistic floats, fashion shows, fireworks display at the beach, sports competitions, a symposium on beer-making technology, and business talks.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shoton Festival in Tibet

Time: August (From the end of the 6th month to the beginning of the 8th month according to the Tibetan calendar).

Venue: Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region

Origin: In the Tibetan language the word “shoton” means “yogurt banquet.” The Shoton Festival has its beginning prior to the 17th century. By Buddhist discipline, monks are confined in their monasteries for several dozen days until summer is over. The day the “confinement” is over the local people treat the monks to banquets, at which yogurt is served liberally.

What’s On: “Sunning the Buddha” (giant tangkha-portraits of the Buddha are brought out of the monasteries and unfolded in the sun for public display), Tibetan opera performances, and trade fairs.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Xinjiang Grape Festival

Time: April 20-26 every year

Venue: Turpan, Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region

Origin: Grape cultivation in the world-famous city of Turpan dates back to more than 2000 years ago. Of the 100-odd grain strains in Turpan, the seedless white grapes, dubbed “green pearls of China,” are the most precious. The raisin and wine produced in Turpan are known for their lingering good tastes. Most of Turpan’s grapes are grown in the renowned Grape Valley, or “Pearl City in the Desert.” The Xinjiang Grape Festival was first launched in 1990 and has since become an annual event in Turpan.

What’s On: Wedding in the Uygur style, mashlap (lively and humorous folk dance), nazkum (witty art performance), Koco-style songs and dances, Hami-melon competition, trade negotiations, tour of the Street of Grapes and Melons, and camel caravans reminiscent of the Silk Road more than 2,000 years ago.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shaolin Int’l Martial Arts Festival

Time: September 10-15 every year

Venue: Zhengzhou, Henan Province

Origin: The worldwide fame of the 1,500-year-old Shaolin Temple is attributed to its consummate martial arts dating back more than a thousand years to the Tang Dynasty. During the Five Dynasties (907-960 AD), monks in the temple had already devised more than 100 styles of boxing. By the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) the Shaolin martial arts reached its zenith. The city of Dengfeng, where the temple is situated, has become a center of martial arts. In 1991 the first Zhengzhou International Martial Arts Festival was held to carry forward the heritage of Chinese martial arts and promote local tourist and economic development. The Festival is held once a year.

What’s On: A good variety of Shaolin martial arts performances and contests, and exchanges between martial arts from around the world. A cruise on the Yellow River gives some idea about the landscape and folklore along this mighty river.