What to Wear to Lunar New Year in Taipei
Holiday February 4–10, 2027 · New Year's Day February 6 · Taipei (Dihua Street, temples and family visits)
NOAA NCEI's record for the Central Weather Administration's Taipei station, the figures on our Taipei February guide. Daylight is for 6 February.
Lunar New Year in Taipei 2027: holiday 4 to 10 February, 19°C / 66°F, drizzle on 11 days, and new clothes for the first day.
- New clothes on the first day — the Tourism Administration's custom for New Year calls
- One vermilion or red piece — the colour of the season
- A wool coat over a knit — 15°C and damp after dark
- Slip-on leather boots — drizzle outside, shoes off inside
- A compact umbrella — about 11 wet days
- Head-to-toe black or white on a New Year call
- A down parka — January's weather, not Seoul's
- Suede on a drizzly day
- Laced boots at homes and some temples
Packing philosophy
Pack for a mild, damp week of visits. Taiwan's Directorate-General of Personnel Administration sets the Lunar New Year holiday from Thursday 4 to Wednesday 10 February 2027, and New Year's Day falls on Saturday 6 February. NOAA NCEI's record for the Taipei station gives February 19.4°C by day and 14.8°C / 59°F at night, with rain on about 11 days and a few cold surges. Taiwan's Tourism Administration describes the first day: new clothes, New Year calls on elders and visits to temples, with red envelopes handed out after the New Year's Eve dinner. So pack a wool coat that closes over a knit, one vermilion piece, charcoal trousers, leather boots that slip off at the door, and an umbrella.
Taipei's New Year is damp and mild, and it is spent at the door of an elder's flat. A grey coat, one vermilion knit and boots that slip off do the whole week.
What the dress code actually is
Lunar New Year has no dress code in Taipei, but Taiwan's Tourism Administration sets out the customs: people put on new clothes on the first day to pay New Year calls on elders and to visit temples, and elders hand out red envelopes after the reunion dinner on New Year's Eve. Red and other warm colours read as festive; all black or all white reads as mourning, so leave it for another week. A guest does not need traditional dress; a plain knit in vermilion does the work. At temples, cover your shoulders, keep your voice down and step over the threshold rather than on it. Many homes take shoes off at the door. Dihua Street's New Year market usually fills the weeks before the holiday; check Taipei City's announcement for 2027.
The capsule
01Light grey single-button wool-cashmere coatAt 15°C / 59°F on a damp evening a knit alone is not enough, and a down parka is far too much. A wool-cashmere coat to mid-thigh sits in between. Light grey keeps the vermilion underneath as the colour of the outfit.
02Vermilion V-neck cotton cardiganThe one festive colour, worn where elders will see it once the coat comes off indoors. A V-neck cardigan buttons over a shirt for a family visit and opens in a warm restaurant.
03Charcoal wool pleated straight-leg trousersWool trousers are warm enough for 15°C and neat enough for an elder's living room. Charcoal takes drizzle splashes and sits under vermilion without adding black.
04Oxblood leather Chelsea bootsSmooth leather sheds drizzle on about 11 wet February days, and a Chelsea boot comes off in one pull at the door of a flat. Oxblood is a warm red for the season, low to the ground.
05Black compact folding umbrellaTaipei's February rain is mostly drizzle, and a compact umbrella fits in the bag between visits. On a crowded Dihua Street it closes fast.
06Persimmon gauze cotton scarf, tasselledA light scarf closes the collar on a cold-surge evening and adds a second warm colour. Gauze cotton is right for 19°C by day and packs to nothing.
07Charcoal structured flap bag with crossbody strapRed envelopes, a phone and an EasyCard. A structured flap bag keeps red envelopes flat and dry, and the crossbody strap leaves your hands free for gifts at the door.
Day to night
Vermilion cardigan · charcoal trousers · oxblood Chelsea boots · grey coat. New Year calls on the first day, then a temple visit before lunch.
Grey coat buttoned · persimmon scarf · umbrella in the bag. Dinner and a walk along Dihua Street at about 15°C / 59°F.
A suggested look — light grey wool-cashmere coat, vermilion v-neck cardigan, charcoal wool trousers, oxblood chelsea boots, persimmon scarf.
What to avoid
- All black or all white on a New Year call
- A down parka at 15°C
- Suede in drizzle
- Laced boots at homes that take shoes off
- Treading on a temple threshold
Frequently asked questions
A wool coat over a knit, trousers and leather boots that slip off, with one red or vermilion piece. NOAA NCEI's Taipei record gives February 19°C / 66°F by day and 15°C / 59°F at night with drizzle on about 11 days. On the first day, new clothes are the custom.
From Thursday 4 to Wednesday 10 February 2027, according to the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration's calendar. New Year's Day is Saturday 6 February. Many shops and restaurants close for the first days.
Taiwan's Tourism Administration describes a reunion dinner on New Year's Eve, after which elders hand out red envelopes, then new clothes on New Year's Day for calls on elders and visits to temples. Avoid dressing in all black or all white for the visits.
Cool and damp rather than cold. NOAA NCEI's record for the Taipei station gives February a high of 19.4°C / 67°F and a low of 14.8°C / 59°F, with rain on about 11 days, and the Central Weather Administration counts a few cold-surge days each February. Daylight is about 11 hours 8 minutes on 6 February.
Sources
- Ministry of Manpower Singapore — Public Holidays for 2027 (press release; Chinese New Year 6–7 February, Monday 8 February in lieu) — accessed 2026-09-29
- NOAA NCEI — Global Summary of the Day, Singapore Changi (48698099999), 1991–2020, read via NOAA's AWS open-data mirror — accessed 2026-09-29
- Meteorological Service Singapore — Climate of Singapore — accessed 2026-09-26
- National Library Board Singapore, Infopedia — Chinese New Year: red, and black and white as mourning colours — accessed 2026-09-29
- National Library Board Singapore — Infopedia: Chinese New Year customs in Singapore (visiting, mandarin oranges in even numbers, hongbao) — accessed 2026-09-29
- Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre — Festive Fever: Chinese New Year Good Luck Guide (red for luck; black and white as funeral colours) — accessed 2026-09-29
- Kreta Ayer Community — Chinatown Chinese New Year Street Light-Up — accessed 2026-09-29
- DGPA — 行政院核定116年（西元2027年）政府行政機關辦公日曆表 (New Year 1–3 Jan; Lunar New Year 4–10 Feb, 初一 6 Feb) — accessed 2026-09-27
- NOAA NCEI — Global Summary of the Day, Taipei (CWA station 466920, filed as 58968099999), 1991–2020, read via NOAA's AWS open-data mirror — accessed 2026-09-29
- Central Weather Administration — 季節特徵概述：冬季 (Taipei cold-surge days) — accessed 2026-09-26
- Taiwan Tourism Administration — Lunar New Year customs (年節習俗) — accessed 2026-09-29
- Taipei City Commerce Office — 2026台北年貨大街「奔年貨」, Dihua Street, to 15 Feb 2026 — accessed 2026-09-27
- Hong Kong SAR Government — General holidays for 2027 (Lunar New Year 6, 8 and 9 February) — accessed 2026-09-29
- Hong Kong Tourism Board — The ultimate guide to Chinese New Year in Hong Kong — accessed 2026-09-29
- Hong Kong Tourism Board — International Chinese New Year Night Parade — accessed 2026-09-29
- Hong Kong SAR Government — Chinese New Year fireworks display, 2026 edition (second day, 8pm) — accessed 2026-09-29
- Food and Environmental Hygiene Department — Lunar New Year Fairs 2026 (Victoria Park) — accessed 2026-09-29
- NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information — Climate Data Online — accessed 2026-04-23
