# Public holidays and crowds

> Part of [Before you go](https://chinafootnotes.com/before-you-go), a sourced pre-trip guide for a first visit to Shanghai. Checked 2026-10-03; rules change, so each step links to its source. Data version 5e1254c0b277.

**15–23 Feb · 1–7 Oct** — The two longest 2026 public holidays; book museums ahead.

## In short

- Recheck attraction notices before the long holidays.
- Book popular museums ahead at holiday peak periods.
- At Shanghai Museum People's Square, book for holidays and school breaks.

## 2026 holidays: CNY 15–23 Feb; National Day 1–7 Oct

1. The State Council General Office notice 国办发明电〔2025〕7号 (issued 4 November 2025) sets the 2026 dates:
2. New Year: 1–3 January (3 days); work on 4 January (Sunday).
3. Spring Festival: 15–23 February (9 days); work on 14 February and 28 February (Saturdays).
4. Qingming: 4–6 April (3 days).
5. Labour Day: 1–5 May (5 days); work on 9 May (Saturday).
6. Duanwu: 19–21 June (3 days).
7. Mid-Autumn: 25–27 September (3 days).
8. National Day: 1–7 October (7 days); work on 20 September (Sunday) and 10 October (Saturday).
- This calendar is dates and make-up workdays. It does not by itself prove longer metro queues, temporary real-name booking, or museum weekend-versus-workday hours.

Sources: [State Council General Office](https://www.gov.cn/zhengce/content/202511/content_7047090.htm)

## National Day 2026: later trains and station closures

1. Check the 2026 National Day scheme for 1–7 October 2026.
2. On 30 September–3 October, Lines 1, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 13 run extended operating hours.
3. On 30 September from 20:00, three stations are planned to close until the end of service: Line 2 and Line 10 East Nanjing Road, and Line 14 Yuyuan Garden.
4. On 1–7 October, the same three stations are planned to close from 16:00 each day until the end of service.
5. Line 10 Yuyuan Garden Station stays open, and closures may change.
6. On 6–7 October, extra night trains are planned on Lines 1, 2, 10 and 17 until 00:00 the next day.
7. They aim at hub dispersal including Hongqiao, and the notice also flags Pudong Airport Terminal 1 and 2.
- This is the 2026 National Day metro scheme. It does not set Maglev or Airport Link last trains, and it does not say last trains never stretch.
- The scheme is a shanghai.gov.cn reprint of 申通地铁集团 (article date 28 September 2026 10:09; page published 29 September 2026).

Sources: [Shanghai Municipal People's Government / 上海发布](https://www.shanghai.gov.cn/nw17239/20260929/2754211366cb4a1095a84ec35386e9b0.html)

## Shanghai Museum People's Square: book at peaks

1. At Shanghai Museum People's Square, individual visitors no longer need a reservation from 1 September 2025.
2. Book at peak periods such as national holidays, summer and winter school breaks, and popular special exhibitions.
3. Treat that as this museum's printed rule, not a city-wide statement that all museums follow make-up workdays.
4. Do not infer it from the State Council calendar alone.
- The rule is on the city English museum page (updated 1 September 2025).

Sources: [Shanghai Municipal People's Government](https://english.shanghai.gov.cn/en-MuseumsGalleries/20231218/01fdd3f62d0c4877bc289ec0b1de6afa.html)

## Traveller tips

- **Hotel registration on public holidays.** FCDO says you must register your place of residence with the local Public Security Bureau within 24 hours of arrival; if you stay in a hotel, they register you at check-in. The city accommodation page's 24-hour clock is the non-hotel path. Hotel check-in registration still happens on 1 October. ([Shanghai Municipal People's Government, 2026-09-22](https://english.shanghai.gov.cn/en-ServicesandGuides-OnlineServices/20260922/665284ae21624250b916b1c0b570ff2f.html); [UK FCDO, 2026-08-27](https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/china/print))
- **National Day metro evenings, 2026.** 申通地铁 via shanghai.gov.cn (article dated 28 September 2026, page published 29 September 2026) planned Line 2 and Line 10 East Nanjing Road and Line 14 Yuyuan Garden closed from 16:00 each day on 1–7 October, and from 20:00 on 30 September. Line 10 Yuyuan stays open. Extra last trains on Lines 1, 2, 10 and 17 are planned on 6–7 October until 00:00. Recheck station notices that day. ([Shanghai Municipal People's Government / 上海发布, 2026-09-29](https://www.shanghai.gov.cn/nw17239/20260929/2754211366cb4a1095a84ec35386e9b0.html))
- **Recheck notices before the long holidays.** The State Council calendar is issued once. The 2026 National Day metro and closure details arrived as a late-September municipal notice. Look again in the 30 days before Spring Festival, May Day and National Day. A place page that lists booking.required=no can still need a slot that week if the venue says so. ([State Council General Office, 2025-11-04](https://www.gov.cn/zhengce/content/202511/content_7047090.htm); [Shanghai Municipal People's Government / 上海发布, 2026-09-28](https://www.shanghai.gov.cn/nw17239/20260929/2754211366cb4a1095a84ec35386e9b0.html))