Queens Lunar New Year Parade: Time, Route, Street Closures

FLUSHING, QUEENS - New York City's largest Chinatown is celebrating the start of the Year of the Pig with a giant Lunar New Year parade on Saturday.

The parade begins at 11 a.m. at Union Street and 37th Avenue in Flushing, Queens, but the festivities start even earlier: The Greater Flushing Chamber of Commerce will host a free reception beforehand at St. George's Episcopal Church from 9:30 to 10:30am. The reception will feature a fencing demonstration by the Queens Fencing Club and a performance by Kpop cover band EPIC 88.

The best location to watch the parade is in front of the Queens Library on Main Street, according to John Choe, executive director of the Greater Flushing Chamber of Commerce. Last year's parade drew about 10,000 people, and Choe said he expects 10,000 attendees this year.

Union and Main Streets between Northern Boulevard and Sanford Avenue will be closed to traffic Saturday, according to the NYPD. The parade will march south on Union Street to Sanford Avenue, then march down the avenue to Main Street. The route continues north on Main Street and ends in front of St. George's Church.

See the parade route below:

The Flushing Lunar New Year Parade is organized by a coalition that includes the Flushing Chinese Business Association and the Korean American Association of Queens.

Lead photo by Frank Franklin II/Associated Press