Shanghai runs a packed event calendar — nine public holidays, two international art fairs in the same week, a marathon that closes the Bund, a tennis Masters, an import expo that fills every hotel in Hongqiao, and a tourism festival that runs for three straight months. This Shanghai festivals events calendar 2026 starts with what is still to come this year, then rolls forward through the first half of 2027 — so it still works for a trip booked next spring. Dates are the confirmed ones where organisers have published them, and clearly flagged as estimates where they have not.
Table of Contents
- The Rest of the Shanghai Festivals Events Calendar 2026
- Public Holidays: When Not to Come
- July–August 2026
- September 2026
- October 2026
- November 2026
- December 2026
- January–February 2027
- March–April 2027
- May–June 2027
- Getting to the Big Venues
- Tickets, Costs and How to Book
- Events That No Longer Run
- Planning Tips for the Shanghai Events Calendar
- FAQ
The Rest of the Shanghai Festivals Events Calendar 2026
If you are booking flights now, this is the table that matters. Everything below is either officially confirmed or, where marked, based on the organiser’s usual slot.
| Dates | Event | Where | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Until 6 Oct | 37th Shanghai Tourism Festival | Citywide | Confirmed |
| Mid-August | Shanghai Book Fair | Shanghai Exhibition Center + Shanghai Book Mall | Annual slot |
| 25–27 Sep | Mid-Autumn Festival | Public holiday | Confirmed |
| 1–7 Oct | National Day Golden Week | Public holiday | Confirmed |
| 5–18 Oct | Rolex Shanghai Masters | Qizhong Tennis Center | Confirmed |
| Oct–Nov | 25th China Shanghai International Arts Festival | Citywide venues | Confirmed |
| 5–10 Nov | China International Import Expo | NECC, Hongqiao | Confirmed |
| 12–15 Nov | ART021 + West Bund Art & Design | Shanghai Exhibition Center / West Bund | ART021 listed; West Bund usually concurrent |
| 6 Dec | Shanghai Marathon (30th) | Starts at the Bund Bull, 07:00 | Confirmed |
| Dec | Christmas markets | Jing’an Kerry, BFC, North Bund, Rockbund | Annual |
Two of those move the hotel market on their own. The Import Expo in early November empties Hongqiao and Pudong of affordable rooms; Art Week the following week does the same to the West Bund and the Former French Concession. If you want a cheap November trip, come in the last ten days of the month.
Public Holidays: When Not to Come
China’s State Council publishes the following year’s holiday calendar around November. These are the confirmed 2026 dates; for 2027, Spring Festival falls on 6 February and the State Council’s 2027 notice on gov.cn sets the official breaks.
| Holiday | 2026 (confirmed) | 2027 | Crowd impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Year | 1–3 Jan | From 1 Jan; full break in the State Council notice on gov.cn | Low |
| Spring Festival | 15–23 Feb (CNY 17 Feb) | CNY 6 Feb | Extreme |
| Qingming | 4–6 Apr | early Apr | Low for visitors |
| Labour Day | 1–5 May | 1 May onwards | High |
| Dragon Boat | 19–21 Jun | 9 Jun | Moderate |
| Mid-Autumn | 25–27 Sep | mid-Sep | Moderate |
| National Day | 1–7 Oct | From Fri 1 Oct; check gov.cn for the full break | Extreme |
The 2026 schedule also sets makeup workdays: Saturdays 14 and 28 February, Saturday 9 May, and 20 September plus 10 October. Those are normal working days, so the metro at 8am is as busy as any Monday. The full notice is summarised in China Briefing’s 2026 holiday breakdown.
Golden Week and Spring Festival are the two to genuinely avoid unless the festival itself is your reason for coming. Domestic travel volumes hit hundreds of millions, high-speed rail sells out weeks in advance, and Yu Garden becomes a queueing exercise. For alternatives see best time to visit Shanghai.
July–August 2026
Shanghai Tourism Festival
The 37th edition opened on 8 July and ran to 6 October, a three-month umbrella. Its summer season (to 31 August) alone carried 170 events, organised around six themed weeks: family travel, museums, city life, art, countryside and urban exploration. Practical highlights include seven lawn concerts on the Huangpu riverside, four themed Suzhou Creek cruise routes, botanical garden night openings and suburban stargazing camps. Most are free or heavily discounted, and the September stretch brings the discounted attraction tickets the festival is known for.
Shanghai Book Fair
Mid-August, at the Shanghai Exhibition Center with a second site at Shanghai Book Mall on Fuzhou Road. The 2025 edition ran 13–19 August across 42,000 square metres. The Exhibition Center site is ticketed; Book Mall is free. It is overwhelmingly Chinese-language, but the building itself — a 1955 Soviet-style wedding cake — is worth the ticket, and the evening author events spill onto Nanjing West Road.
Music in the Summer Air (MISA)
The Shanghai Symphony’s summer season, held in July at the Symphony Hall on Fuxing Middle Road with free outdoor sessions. Ticket prices vary by concert; book through the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra.
Shanghai International Beer Festival
Mid-August, outdoor, family-friendly, with food trucks and local craft brewers alongside the big names. Entry terms have changed between editions, so check the current listing before you go.
Lujiazui Music Festival
Late July; outdoor performances in the Pudong financial district, free to attend.
September 2026
Mid-Autumn Festival (Zhongqiu)
Falls on Friday 25 September 2026, with a three-day public holiday of 25–27 September. This is the year’s best minor holiday for visitors: less frantic than Golden Week, and genuinely atmospheric. Mooncakes appear in every bakery from late August — the Shanghainese versions worth queueing for are the savoury fresh-meat ones (鲜肉月饼) from Guangming Cun on Huaihai Road, where the line regularly runs an hour. Parks stay open late for moon-viewing, and Yu Garden puts on lantern displays. Note that 20 September is a makeup workday, so the week before is a six-day week for locals.
Hairy Crab Season Begins
Mid-September through November, peaking in October and early November. This is the single best reason to visit Shanghai in autumn if you care about food. See our hairy crab guide for what to order and where.
Shanghai Tourism Festival (peak weeks)
September is when the festival’s discounted attraction tickets and the Huaihai Road parade land. Worth checking the schedule if you are here — the discounts routinely halve entry to major sites.
Shanghai International Light Festival
September into October, along the Huangpu waterfront. Free, and best combined with a walk on the Bund at night or a river night cruise.
October 2026
National Day Golden Week
1–7 October. One of the year’s heaviest travel periods, when the busy attractions and shopping districts draw huge crowds. Hotel rates climb, bullet trains to Suzhou and Hangzhou need booking early, and the Bund promenade is packed. If you are already in Shanghai, spend it in the Former French Concession, the museums and the smaller parks rather than the headline sights.
Rolex Shanghai Masters
5–18 October 2026 at the Qizhong Tennis Center in Minhang. This is Asia’s only ATP Masters 1000 tournament, played over two weeks. Tickets for 2026 went on sale from 30 July; check the official ticketing page. Qizhong is a long way out — take Metro Line 1 or Line 5 to Xinzhuang and then the tournament shuttle, or take a Didi, and leave slack for shuttle queues and traffic.
China Shanghai International Arts Festival
The 25th edition runs 17 October to 15 November across the city’s main venues. The 2025 edition staged more than 500 events, totalling over 1,200 performances and exhibitions. Programming spans theatre, dance, orchestral music and cross-genre work, and a good share of it is in English or wordless.
Shanghai Fashion Week
The autumn edition, showing the following spring/summer season, usually opens in the second week of October — the 2025 edition began on 9 October. Xintiandi is the main hub. Industry-focused, but showrooms and pop-ups are open to the public.
Wuzhen Theatre Festival
Mid-October, at the water town two hours from Shanghai. Chinese-language theatre with a strong international guest programme and free street performances throughout the old town. See our Wuzhen guide for how to get there and where to stay.
November 2026
China International Import Expo (CIIE)
5–10 November, at the National Exhibition and Convention Center in Hongqiao. The 9th edition. It is a trade expo for professional visitors rather than a tourist event, with little public access, and its real effect on visitors is on hotel prices and airport traffic — book around it, not into it.
ART021 Shanghai Contemporary Art Fair
12–15 November 2026 at the Shanghai Exhibition Center. A major contemporary art fair, bringing together more than 100 galleries and art institutions this year. Check ART021’s official announcement for ticket prices before you buy.
West Bund Art & Design
Traditionally concurrent with ART021 in the same mid-November week, spread across five venues along the West Bund cultural corridor. The 2025 edition ran 13–16 November. Together the two fairs constitute Shanghai Art Week, when every gallery, museum and non-profit in the city opens something new. For the museums and permanent collections, see our contemporary art guide.
Shanghai Biennale
Worth correcting a widely repeated error: the Biennale runs on odd-year openings, not even. The 15th edition, Does the flower hear the bee?, opened at the Power Station of Art in November 2025 and closed in spring 2026. Watch the Power Station of Art’s announcements for the 16th edition’s dates. General entry to the museum is free, though special exhibitions can be ticketed.
December 2026
Shanghai International Marathon
Sunday 6 December 2026, the 30th edition, starting at 07:00 from the Bund Bull. The field grows from 23,000 to 30,000 marathon places this year, with full-marathon and wheelchair-marathon categories; the official race site carries the finish venue, entry fees and cut-off. Note the date has drifted between late November and early December in recent years — 26 November in 2023, 1 December in 2024, 30 November in 2025 — so check before booking flights. Watching from the roadside costs nothing.
Christmas Markets
Not a public holiday, but commercially enormous. In the 2025 season the main ones were: Jing’an Kerry Centre (1515 Nanjing West Road, early December to 1 January, free); BFC on the riverside at 600 Zhongshan East 2nd Road, running selected weekends, free; Christkindlmarkt on the Bund at Rockbund, ¥30 pre-sale or ¥40 on the door; and Paulaner’s Christkindlmarkt at 500 Dongdaming Road on the North Bund, ¥50 redeemable against food and drink. For the 2026 dates, check each market’s WeChat account or the SmartShanghai events listings.
Christmas Eve Dinners
24 December at the five-star hotels, each with its own set menu and price, so ask when you reserve and book early. Peninsula, Waldorf Astoria and the Bund-facing dining rooms go first.
New Year’s Eve on the Bund
31 December. A light show, an enormous crowd and a heavy police presence — a legacy of the 2014 crush on the Chen Yi Square steps that killed 35 people, after which the big official countdown events were scaled back. Arrive before 21:00 or watch from a rooftop bar instead.
January–February 2027
Chinese New Year (Spring Festival)
Chinese New Year 2027 falls on Saturday 6 February, the Year of the Goat, with New Year’s Eve on Friday 5 February. The public holiday dates come in the State Council’s 2027 holiday notice, usually issued in November or December. The city empties of migrant workers and fills with domestic tourists; small restaurants close for a week, chain restaurants and hotels stay open. See our Chinese New Year Shanghai guide.
Yu Garden Lantern Festival
Built around Chinese New Year, so check Yu Garden’s official announcement for the 2027 dates before you plan around it. Hundreds of themed lanterns fill the bazaar; the outdoor displays are free, the inner garden ticketed. Go on a weekday evening or accept a two-hour crawl. Our Yu Garden guide covers tickets and timing.
Lantern Festival (Yuanxiao)
The 15th day of the new year — around 20 February 2027. Tang yuan (sweet rice balls) and the formal close of the Spring Festival period.
New Year bell-ringing at Longhua Temple
The night of 31 December into 1 January, when Shanghai’s oldest temple rings its bell 108 times. Ticketed and popular with locals rather than tourists; see our guide to temples in Shanghai.
Plum Blossom Season
Late January through February at the Shanghai Botanical Garden and Century Park, and the first sign that winter is ending. February is cold and damp rather than freezing — our Shanghai in winter guide covers what to wear and which sights work best in the cold.
March–April 2027
Formula 1 Chinese Grand Prix
16–18 April 2027 at the Shanghai International Circuit in Jiading, on F1’s official 2027 calendar, though F1 calendars shift, so check it again before booking. Metro Line 11 runs to Shanghai Circuit station; grandstand prices are on the official ticketing channel.
Cherry Blossom Festival
Late March to early April at Gucun Park in Baoshan — Metro Line 7 to Gucun Park station. In 2026 the festival charged ¥20 on weekdays and ¥10 for night viewing; check the park’s announcement for 2027 prices. One of the more photogenic things the city does. Weekends are shoulder to shoulder; go on a Tuesday morning.
Magnolia season
March. The magnolia is Shanghai’s official city flower and it appears in parks and along residential streets across the Former French Concession.
Shanghai Fashion Week
Late March into early April, the larger of the two annual editions.
Qingming Festival
Around 4–6 April. Tomb-sweeping day. Domestic travel picks up but tourist impact is modest; cemeteries and the roads to them are the only genuinely busy places.
Shanghai Auto Show
Late April, odd years only — so 2027 is an edition year. One of the world’s largest motor shows, at the NECC. Public days sell out.
Shanghai International Half Marathon
April, in Pudong. Smaller and easier to enter than the December full marathon.
May–June 2027
Labour Day
1 May onwards. In 2026 this ran as a five-day break, 1–5 May; the 2027 break follows the same State Council holiday notice as the other public holidays, so check it before booking.
Shanghai International Film Festival
Mid-June. The 28th edition ran 12–21 June 2026, and the festival keeps to that window most years. Asia’s most significant film festival, with hundreds of screenings across dozens of cinemas; tickets go on general sale about a week ahead through the official SIFF site and disappear within minutes for the headline titles. Many screenings carry English subtitles. For context before you book, our guide to the films and novels set in Shanghai covers the classics and the modern revival.
Dragon Boat Festival (Duanwu)
9 June 2027 (it fell on 19 June in 2026, with a 19–21 June holiday). Dragon boat racing on Suzhou Creek and in Jinshan and Qingpu; zongzi in every bakery for a fortnight beforehand.
Design Shanghai and the design season
Design Shanghai runs in the spring at the Shanghai Exhibition Center, with satellite events across Jing’an and the West Bund.
Getting to the Big Venues
Shanghai’s event venues are scattered, and several of them are genuinely far out. Budget the travel time before you buy a ticket for something that starts at 19:30.
| Venue | Hosts | Metro | From People’s Square |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shanghai Exhibition Center, 1000 Yan’an Middle Rd | ART021, Book Fair, Design Shanghai | Line 2/7 Jing’an Temple | 15 min |
| West Bund Art Centre and neighbours, Longteng Ave | West Bund Art & Design | Line 11 Yunjin Road | 35 min |
| NECC Hongqiao, 333 Songze Ave | China International Import Expo, Auto Show | Line 2/17 National Exhibition and Convention Center (NECC) | Far west; allow extra time |
| Qizhong Tennis Center, Minhang | Rolex Shanghai Masters | Line 1 or 5 to Xinzhuang, then tournament shuttle | Long trip; allow for shuttle waits and traffic |
| Shanghai International Circuit, Jiading | Formula 1 Chinese Grand Prix | Line 11 Shanghai Circuit | Long trip; check the Shanghai Metro app |
| Power Station of Art, 200 Huayuangang Rd | Shanghai Biennale, major exhibitions | Line 4/8 Xizang South Rd, 15 min walk | 20 min |
On event days the metro is almost always faster than a taxi — Hongqiao during the Import Expo and Jiading on a race weekend are both gridlocked by mid-morning. Last trains on most lines run between 22:30 and 23:00, which matters if you are at a concert in Pudong. Plan the return leg before you go out.
Tickets, Costs and How to Book
Almost everything in China is booked through a phone app, and almost nothing takes a paper ticket at the door.
- Damai (大麦) — the dominant ticketing platform for concerts, theatre and sport. Requires a Chinese phone number for some events; an Alipay mini-program version is easier for visitors.
- Alipay and WeChat mini-programs — most museums, parks and temples take bookings this way, often requiring passport details. Book 1–3 days ahead for anything popular.
- Real-name registration — major concerts and sports events are ticketed to a named ID or passport, and the name must match at the gate. Resale is restricted, so buy from the official channel.
- Typical prices — free for parades, lantern displays and marathon viewing, and for several of the Christmas markets; ¥60–1,920 for 2026 Shanghai Masters Centre Court tickets, depending on date, session and seat. Symphony, art fair and F1 prices vary by event, so check each organiser’s ticketing page.
Two practical warnings. Public holidays reduce restaurant availability — many family-run places close for Spring Festival week — and hotel rates rise sharply around CIIE, Art Week and Golden Week. And museums close on Mondays almost universally, which catches people out during art fair week when the fairs are open and the institutions are not.
Events That No Longer Run
Older Shanghai event calendars still circulate online with entries that have not happened for years. Three worth knowing about before you plan around them.
- ShanghaiPRIDE — began in 2009, but the organisers ended all activities in August 2020 and it has been on hiatus since. Any listing showing a June Pride week in Shanghai is out of date.
- The Shanghai Biennale on even years — the schedule shifted after the pandemic and openings now fall in odd years. The 14th opened in 2023, the 15th in November 2025.
- The Shanghai Auto Show as an annual event — it alternates with Beijing, so Shanghai gets odd years only. 2027 is a Shanghai year.
The general rule: if a listing gives no venue and no year, treat it as folklore. Organiser sites and the city’s own English government portal are the reliable sources, and both publish confirmations two to three months out.
Planning Tips for the Shanghai Events Calendar
- Best festival window: late September to mid-November. The events cluster there and so does the good weather — see Shanghai in autumn.
- Avoid for crowds: Spring Festival and National Day Golden Week. Everything is open and everything is full.
- Free by default: lantern displays, the Light Festival, Tourism Festival parades, Christmas market entry at Jing’an Kerry and the BFC, marathon spectating, most Power Station of Art shows. More in free things to do in Shanghai.
- Book 1–8 weeks ahead for ART021, the film festival, marathon entry (check the official race site for the entry window), Shanghai Masters finals weekend and Christmas Eve dinners.
- Pair a festival with a season: hairy crab plus autumn weather plus art week is the strongest single fortnight in the Shanghai year.
- Check the makeup workday calendar before assuming a Saturday will be quiet — some are official working days.
- Weather-check the month against our month-by-month weather guide before committing to anything outdoors.
- Build the trip around one event, not four. Shanghai is big enough that two events on opposite sides of the river will eat a day in transit.
- Eat seasonally. Mooncakes in September, hairy crab from October, zongzi before Duanwu, tang yuan at the Lantern Festival — the food calendar is as reliable as the event one. See the Shanghai food guide.
If you are still deciding on dates, our guide to planning a Shanghai trip works through visas, flights and length of stay alongside the calendar.
Frequently Asked Questions
What’s the biggest festival in Shanghai?
Chinese New Year is one of the most important holidays in Chinese culture, with festivities running on to the Lantern Festival. Mid-Autumn is the other big family festival. Major international events include Shanghai Art Week in mid-November and the Rolex Shanghai Masters in October.
When is Chinese New Year 2027 in Shanghai?
6 February 2027, the Year of the Goat. The 2026 date was 17 February, with an official holiday of 15–23 February. Check Yu Garden’s official announcement for the lantern display dates.
When is Mid-Autumn Festival 2026?
Friday 25 September 2026, with a public holiday from 25 to 27 September. It does not overlap with National Day this year — the two are separated by three days.
When is National Day Golden Week 2026?
1 to 7 October 2026. Add makeup workdays on 20 September and 10 October, when offices and schools operate normally despite falling at a weekend.
When is the Shanghai Marathon 2026?
Sunday 6 December 2026, the 30th edition, starting from the Bund Bull at 07:00. There are 30,000 marathon places this year. Free to watch anywhere on the route.
When is ART021 Shanghai 2026?
12–15 November 2026 at the Shanghai Exhibition Center, with West Bund Art & Design expected in the same week. Ticket prices come with the fair’s official announcement, so look there before buying.
Are Shanghai festivals free?
Many are. Lantern displays, the Light Festival, Tourism Festival parades, most Christmas markets and marathon spectating cost nothing. Ticketed events vary widely: Centre Court seats at the 2026 Shanghai Masters ran from ¥60 to ¥1,920.
What’s the best Shanghai festival for international visitors?
The Yu Garden Lantern Festival around Chinese New Year and Mid-Autumn are the most atmospheric without needing Chinese. Shanghai Art Week in November is the easiest to navigate if you prefer galleries to crowds.
Should I plan my trip around a festival?
Yes, if you pick the right one. Late October and the second half of November are the strongest weeks of the year. Avoid Golden Week and Spring Festival unless the festival itself is the point.
Is Christmas celebrated in Shanghai?
Not as a public holiday, but commercially it is everywhere. In 2025 the markets were at Jing’an Kerry Centre, the BFC, Rockbund and the North Bund, and the big hotels put on Christmas Eve banquets, each priced by the hotel.
Is there a Shanghai Biennale in 2026?
No. The 15th Shanghai Biennale opened in November 2025 and closed in spring 2026, and the Power Station of Art announces the next edition. The building is free to enter for its general displays, but special exhibitions and the Biennale itself can be ticketed.
How far ahead should I book hotels around major events?
Two to three months for the Import Expo week in early November, Art Week the week after, and Golden Week. Rates in those windows run well above normal.
Plan Your Trip
Combine with our pillar guides on best time to visit Shanghai, month-by-month weather, and our season guides. For background, see Tourism in Shanghai on Wikipedia.
