The most evocative Chinese New Year in Italy is in Prato! At 5pm on Tuesday 28 January the ringing of the bell at the Pu Hua Si Buddhist temple will kick off New Year's Eve 2025, aligning perfectly with midnight in Beijing. According to the Chinese lunar calendar, we enter the year of the Snake which symbolizes wisdom, cunning and intuition.
The traditional and highly anticipated Dragon parades and the Lion dance are scheduled for Saturday 8th and Sunday 9th February.
On Saturday 8 February the party will cross the streets of Macrolotto 1 and 2, the heart of the Chinese community and the industrial and productive Prato. Sunday 9 February will be the turn of the historic centre, the heart of the ancient city and custodian of the city's history, in a unique mix of ancient and contemporary that only Prato can offer. The departure of the procession will be from the Buddhist temple and will first cross the Macrolotto Zero area and then the historic center, entering the shops in accordance with the Chinese ritual according to which the passage of the Dragon drives away bad luck from the commercial establishment for the new year in which we are preparing to enter.
The highlight of the procession on Sunday 9 February will be in Piazza Santa Maria delle Carceri, where the spectacular Lion Dance will take place: this unique event is the moment in which you can get to know the largest Chinese community in Italy as best as possible. A precious moment of encounter between Eastern and Western cultures.
Saturday 8 February
Dragon Parade and Lion Dance
Macrolotto 1 and 2 industrial area
Opening hours 9.00-13.30
Via Toscana 1, Via del Molinuzzo, Via Toscana, Via del Molinuzzo, Via Traversa il Crocifisso, Via dei Fossi, EuroIngro – internal, Via Gora del Pero, Via Toscana, Via Gora del Pero, Via delle Colombaie, Via delle Pollative, Via Pollative 119/G stopped in the courtyard for the lunch break.
Opening hours 2.00pm-6.00pm
Via Piemonte, Via Veneto, Via Val d'Aosta, Via Puglia, Via Friuli Venezia Giulia, Via Veneto, Via Trentino Alto Adige, Via Puglia, Via Basilicata, Via Veneto, Via Calabria, Via Veneto, Via Piemonte, Via Cipriani, Via dei Trebbi, Via Ghisleri, Via delle Colombaie.
Sunday 9 February
Dragon Parade and Lion Dance
Central area of Macrolotto Zero and historic center
Opening hours 9.00-11.30
Piazza della Gualchierina 19, Piazza del Mercato Nuovo, Via Bologna, Via Porta al Serraglio, Via Strozzi, Via Marini, Via Filzi up to Borgonuovo (stop in the Prismalab square), Via Pistoiese, Via Rossini, Via Zipoli, Via Pistoiese, Via Castagnoli, Via Giordano (stop at the playground), Via Pistoiese, Via San Vincenzo, Piazza San Domenico, Piazza del Comune, Piazza delle Carceri.
