Here's when the Chinese New Year starts in 2025, how long it lasts, where the Lunar New Year is celebrated and your guide to the Year of the Snake.

The Year of the Snake is upon us as communities across the Bay Area celebrate Lunar New Year, Chinese New Year and Tet. Here’s just a sampling of ways to join in the celebrations.

The Connecticut Museum of Culture and History will host its annual Lunar New Year celebration on Feb. 22 at CT State Community College Manchester's Arts, Sciences and Technology Center from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Live entertainment and crafts will be offered; tickets for the event are free.

Lunar New Year, also known as Chinese New Year, marks the beginning of the lunar calendar based on the moon's cycles. Celebrations begin with the first new moon and last 15 days, ending on the first full moon.

While the New Year begins as soon as the clock strikes midnight on Jan. 1, the Chinese Lunar New Year comes a few weeks later. In 2025, the new moon on Jan. 29 marks a fresh beginning for those who celebrate — and it signifies the formal switch from the year of the dragon to the snake’s year-long reign.

The Lunar New Year, beginning Jan. 29 and concluding on Feb. 8, 2025, welcomes the Year of the Snake, symbolizing wisdom, intuition and transformation. And brands are incorporating snake motifs, materials mimicking snake skin and designs that embody the snake’s fluid and dynamic nature into their footwear collection.