Lunar New Year celebrations come to town

The celebrations are set to take place on Sunday

A seaside town will be wrapped in decorations and lanterns in preparation for a "vibrant" procession with music to mark the Lunar New Year.

Millions of people across Asia and the world are celebrating the festival, also known as Chinese New Year, which coincides with the first new moon of the lunar calendar.

Scores of people are set to attend the free celebrations in Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, on Sunday, which have been organised by Community Voluntary Services Tendring (CVST) and the Colchester Chinese Culture Society.

Lisa Andrews, deputy chief officer at CVST, said: "It is really exciting - it is something we've done for a number of years. It is a really vibrant and exciting way to celebrate the Chinese New Year."

[Organisers from last year's event] The Lunar New Year, also known as Chinese New Year, is a 15-day festival that falls between 29 January and 4 February

Mrs Andrews said the event usually attracted a footfall of 100 visitors.

The Lunar New Year is a 15-day festival that falls between 29 January and 4 February and Chinese communities, and some regions in Asia, consider it to be the most important festival of the year.

Mrs Andrews said events like this are "very important, it gives people an insight into the world outside of Clacton-on-Sea and England".

"It is a great way to learn about other cultures," she added.

Simone Xue, chairperson of Colchester Chinese Culture Society, said it had been working with the CVST to put the event together for the past three years.

Mrs Xue, said 2025 was the year of the snake, which symbolised wisdom, elegance and mystery.

"It is really special for me, I was born in the year of the snake," she added.

"In the western culture, the snake is depicted as very negative but the snake has a very positive image in China."

Mrs Xue explained that there is a goddess called Nüwa, also written as Nügua, who has a human head and the body of a snake, and she represented peace and bravery.

"We are really excited, we are expecting a full house, it is always a very very popular event," she said.

The festivities were due to take place on Sunday between 13:00 and 15:00 GMT at Imperial House in Clacton-on-Sea.