5 best places in Asia to spend your Christmas Holidays

Every year, Christmas unofficially marks the beginning of a week-long celebration. A lot of us look forward to celebrating the last week of the year with family and friends. People go to parties and plan vacations to celebrate not one, but two occasions, the Christmas and the New Year. Even in Asian countries, where the religion is diverse, Christmas is celebrated with much festivity. If you want to experience the beauty of celebrating Christmas in Asia, these are the places you should be heading to:

1. Singapore

Of all the Asian countries, Singapore receives the highest amount of tourists all through the year. During the Christmas week, the city buzzes with tourists from all over the world. The entire city is decorated with lights; the most noticeable among them is the decor of the shopping belt at Orchard road where the shops are decorated with lights and people dress up in their best. Children can be spotted playing in the artificial snow. Also, there are unlimited food, drinks, street shows, and shopping to keep people hooked on to the celebration.

2. Japan

In Japan, the Christmas celebration begins a day before. Since there aren’t too many Christians in Japan, Christmas is celebrated more like a fun event than a religious one. The entire country participates in the 2-day celebration with the streets getting decked up in lights, shops providing special offers on clothes and accessories and people going to restaurants with friends and family. Fried chicken and sponge cakes are eaten in every household as a part of the Christmas tradition in Japan.

3. Hong Kong

Christmas in Hong Kong is celebrated with much grandeur. Glittering lights and festive décor can be seen at every corner of the country. Shopping malls, hotels, and harbors are decorated with lights and special cruises also run during Christmas. Many places organize special shows, concerts and carnivals for the entire week from Christmas till New Year and it’s definitely a great time to visit there.

4. Philippines

In the Philippines, Christmas is an important festival. The preparation begins in the third week itself with people going for a 9-day early mass called Misa De Gallo. The Philippines have more than 80% Catholic Christians residing there and it’s the only Asian country with so much Christian population. They also have their own Christmas traditions such as decorating houses with ‘parols’ which are bamboo poled or framed with a lighted star lantern on it. During the Christmas Eve, people go for the evening mass at the church which is followed by a midnight feast called Noche Buena where traditional Christmas food like Bibinka and Puto Bumbong are eaten.

5. China

Although China has very less Christian population, the festival is still celebrated in all the major cities. The houses and streets are decorated with lights and Christmas trees, people exchange gifts at home, school, and workplace and wish each other on the Christmas. Carols and popular Christmas songs are played on the day and some people dress up as Santa Claus to entertain everyone on the street. One unique tradition that takes place during the Christmas Eve in China is giving apples to people covered in coloured papers.

Although, there is still some time to Christmas holidays, you better start planning your vacation soon. If you are confused about where to go, you can reach out to us at Pickyourtrail where we help people plan their own vacations.

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