Bay Area residents can celebrate the Year of the Snake with San Francisco’s Chinese New Year Parade on Saturday — which this year is closing out with “a choreographed drone light” show over the Embarcadero.
The 2025 Grand Marshal is celebrated actor Joan Chen, who recently starred in and produced the Bay Area coming-of-age movie Dìdi.
Keep reading for what to know about the San Francisco Chinese New Year Parade on Feb. 15, including the parade route map and street closures that day. For timely updates, you can follow the Chinese New Year Festival and Parade’s official social media pages and website.
Jump straight to:
- What’s the San Francisco Chinese New Year parade route?
- What streets will be closed Saturday for the parade?
- Where are other Lunar New Year celebrations in the next few weeks?
The Year of the Snake symbolizes rebirth and regeneration — and since the snake’s element is wood in 2025, it also represents growth and flexibility.
People born under this year are described as courageous and resilient. These birth years include 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001 and 2013.
Keep reading for our guide to attending one of the biggest celebrations in the Bay Area to mark Lunar New Year 2025 — and the other events happening across the region to celebrate.
What is the San Francisco Chinese New Year Parade route?
Saturday’s Chinese New Year parade will begin at Second and Market streets at 5:00 p.m. PT. (Remember, sunset will be just before 6 p.m. that evening.)
Crowds will get busier as the route approaches Chinatown, so depending on where you’re hoping to watch from, you may want to get there early (around 4 p.m.) to secure a good viewing spot.
The parade then goes around Union Square and ends at Kearny and Columbus Avenue. The parade is around 1.3 miles and will last around two and a half hours.
The closing drone light show over the Embarcadero will begin at 8 p.m.
Do I need tickets to the San Francisco Chinese New Year parade?
The parade is a free event. However, if you want to sit on the bleachers, you will need paid tickets to be assigned a specific section (but not a specific seat).
There are four bleacher sections, each on:
- Washington and Jackson streets
- California and Sacramento streets
- Kearny and Grant streets
- Stockton and Powell streets
Tickets range from $45 to $75, and can be bought online. The more expensive tickets come with a gift bag.
The bleacher seating is free for children under two, as long as they are sitting on the lap of a caregiver. Organizers suggest that if you buy tickets, you’ll need to be seated early, close to 4 p.m., to be ready for the start of the parade.
All sections of the bleachers will have wheelchair seating, but you will need a ticket regardless. If you need accessible spaces, you will also need a ticket.
Portable restrooms will be available near the bleachers.
How can I get to the San Francisco Chinese New Year parade? Are there street closures?
Chinese New Year organizers strongly encourage public transportation with their list of transportation options.
The SF Muni bus system has a webpage where you can view updates and changes to the MUNI service and reroutes.
Street closures for the parade will be on Saturday from 3 p.m. to around 9:30 p.m. in the following areas:
- Second Street between Market and Mission (starting earlier, at 2 p.m.)
- Market between Second Street and Geary
- Geary between Market and Powell
- Powell between Geary and Post
- Post between Kearny to Powell
- Kearny between Geary and Pacific
BART also has guidance for the parade, and Montgomery Station is the closest stop to the parade, at Market and 2nd streets. Embarcadero and Powell St. are also nearby.
For transit fans, BART is offering shirts to celebrate the Year of the Snake, continuing the trend of very wearable merch repping Bay Area public transportation.
Is there any parking for the Chinese New Year parade?
There are parking garages at:
- Union Street at 123 O’Farrell St.
- Chinatown at 250 Clay St. and 733 Kearny St.
- North Beach at 735 Vallejo St. and 766 Vallejo St.
You can also get a parking pass on websites like SpotHero.
What will the weather be like on Saturday for the Chinese New Year parade?
The parade will be happening rain or shine, according to the Chinese New Year parade’s official website. It may be a sunny day that Saturday, but it’s the Bay Area, so plan to bring warm layers and perhaps an umbrella, just in case.
You can also adorn yourself in lucky colors like red and gold to mark the Lunar New Year.