There are currently seven official public holidays or holiday periods in Mainland China in 2020. Sometimes additional holiday or holidays are added during the year, but this is not usual.
Weekends are usually swapped with the weekdays next to the actual holiday to create a longer vacation period. So, it is possible that for example the Sunday before or after a holiday is a normal workday.
The dates of the Chinese holidays change every year as they follow the traditional Chinese lunar calendar.
Please note that the holidays in Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan, are different from Mainland China.
Below are listed the public holidays in Mainland China for 2020:
Holiday name | Holidays date | Duration | Compensating workdays |
New Year’s Day | Wednesday 1 January 2020 | 1 day | |
Spring Festival (Chinese New Year) | Friday 24 – Sunday 2 February 2020* | 10 days | Sunday 19 January |
Qingming Festival | Saturday 4 – Monday 6 April 2020 | 3 days | |
Labour Day | Friday 1 – Tuesday 5 May 2020 | 5 days | Sunday 26 April and Saturday 9 May |
Dragon Boat Festival | Thursday 25 – Saturday 27 June 2020 | 3 days | Sunday 28 June 2020 |
Mid-Autumn Festival & National Day (Golden Week) | Thursday 1 – Thursday 8 October 2020 | 8 days | Sunday 27 September and Saturday 10 October 2020 |
* Update 27.1.2020: Three days added because of the Corona virus situation.
Update: 10.2.2020: Lots of “holiday extensions” and restrictions ordered by central, provincial, and local governments. Local situation must be checked case by case.
It is generally suggested to avoid tourist attractions during the public holidays as they are very crowded. During the public holidays hotel accommodation, travel, and entrance tickets can be more expensive.
Especially long holidays Spring Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival & National Day affect companies’ operations, especially in labour intensive production industries. Often factory workers start their holidays earlier and finish later. This is because workers are often from other cities and provinces and during the long holidays the get the chance to visit home.
Source (in Chinese): http://www.gov.cn/zhengce/content/2019-11/21/content_5454164.htm