Chinese New Year Parade

For over 60 years, lovely and talented young women from throughout the United States have come to San Francisco to compete in the annual Miss Chinatown U.S.A. Pageant. The new Queen and her Court will become goodwill ambassadors for the Chinese community throughout the new year.

The 2020 Miss Chinatown USA Pageant will be taking place on Saturday, February 1, 2020 at 7:30 PM and will be followed by the Coronation Ball and then the Southwest Airlines Chinese New Year Parade, taking place on February 7, 2020 and February 8, 2020, respectively.

Named one of the top ten Parades in the world by International Festivals & Events Association, the Southwest Airlines Chinese New Year Parade in San Francisco is one of the few remaining night illuminated Parades in North America and the biggest parade celebrating the lunar new year outside of Asia. Started in the 1860’s by the Chinese in San Francisco as a means to educate the community about their culture, the Parade and Festival have grown to be the largest celebration of Asian culture outside of Asia. Since 1958, the parade has been under the direction of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce.

Over 100 units will participate in the Southwest Airlines® Chinese New Year Parade. A San Francisco tradition since just after the Gold Rush, the parade continues to delight and entertain the many hundreds of thousands of people who come to watch it on the street or tune in to watch it on television on KTVU Fox 2 or KTSF Channel 26, 6:00-8:00 p.m., on Saturday, February 8, 2020.

Nowhere in the world will you see a lunar new year parade with more gorgeous floats, elaborate costumes, ferocious lions, exploding firecrackers, and of course the newly crowned Miss Chinatown U.S.A. and her court. A crowd favorite is the spectacular 288′ Golden Dragon (“Gum Lung”). It takes a team of over 180 men and women from the martial arts group, White Crane, to carry the Golden Dragon through the streets of San Francisco.