San Jose Tết Festival draws crowds as Bay Area welcomes Year of the Horse

By Da Lin

Many Asian Americans across the Bay Area are preparing to celebrate Lunar New Year on Feb. 17, ushering in the Year of the Horse.

Festivities are taking place throughout the region this weekend, from San Francisco to Oakland to San Jose. In San Jose, thousands gathered for the annual Tết Festival, the Vietnamese community’s largest Lunar New Year celebration.

For many Asian Americans, Lunar New Year is the most important holiday of the year, often compared to Christmas. Instead of wrapped presents, children receive red envelopes symbolizing luck and prosperity.

At the festival outside San Jose’s Eastridge Center, families posed for photos with large golden horse displays, a nod to the Chinese zodiac sign associated with speed, freedom and success.

“We just want to get a little bit of the new year spirit in, so this is the perfect spot,” said Chi Tran, a Milpitas resident who attended with his wife and their four-year-old son on Friday afternoon.

The event featured live Vietnamese music, carnival rides, and a wide array of traditional Vietnamese food. Many parents said they attend to help their children stay connected to their cultural roots.

Tran dressed his son in a traditional áo dài for the occasion.

“This is a traditional Vietnamese áo dài. My son, he’s got one. [My wife and I have] one on. Even though he’s born here, we’re trying to give him a little bit of Vietnamese tradition,” he said.

For Tran, the Year of the Horse carries special meaning.

“The Year of the Horse means lots of prosperity, lots of good things happening,” he said.

The festival is organized by the Vietnamese Catholic community of the Diocese of San Jose. Organizers estimated that 70,000 people attended last year and hope to surpass that number this year, despite rain in the forecast.

“This is the biggest event for Vietnamese outside of Vietnam. The budget that we spent for this event is around $250,000,” said Deacon Nhut Ho, a festival spokesman.

According to U.S. Census data, San Jose is home to the largest Vietnamese population of any city outside Vietnam, with roughly 150,000 Vietnamese Americans.

Not far from the festival, many families visited the Grand Century Mall in San Jose’s Little Saigon neighborhood, shopping for groceries and decorations ahead of the holiday.

“We’re decorating. We’ve spent a lot of time cleaning, making sure everything is nice,” said Annie Nguyen-Barany, a Berkeley resident describing her family’s preparations.

Many families are also planning large reunion dinners to mark the new year.

“I also like the red envelopes. And I also like meeting other Vietnamese families, [so I can practice] my Vietnamese,” said Rumi Barany of Berkeley.

For the Tran family and many others, Lunar New Year is both a celebration of tradition and a hopeful look ahead.

“We just want to wish everybody a Happy New Year. May 2026 bring you a lot of prosperity, peace, joy, love, and happiness,” Tran said.