San Francisco’s Chinatown Autumn Moon Festival returns Saturday and Sunday, September 19–20, 2026, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. along Grant Avenue between California and Broadway. The Chinatown Merchants Association presentation: nonstop entertainment, food vendors, mooncakes, kids’ activities, and lion dancing in the city’s oldest Chinatown. Expect Mid-Autumn as a family street weekend rather than a single parade hour. The opening energy usually concentrates near California and Grant; expect a closing dragon or lion procession may still appear late Sunday if the 2026 grid confirms it.
Who should cross for this
Chinese and Chinese American families, diaspora travelers, food seekers, and visitors who want a living Mid-Autumn weekend without a ticket lottery.
A Chinatown Merchants Association festival that keeps Mid-Autumn ritual, performance, and street commerce visible in San Francisco’s historic Chinese American core.
Suggested trip length: 2–3 nights
Trust the dates, not the stale timetable
Expect the organizer site still displays detailed September 27–28 stage blocks that read like a prior edition. Confirm 2026 performer names, parade minutes, and dumpling-contest times as pending until that grid is rewritten for September 19–20. Lion dance, martial arts, folk dance, and live bands as the recurring genre mix without treating any single 2025 or 2024 act as guaranteed.
Eat, then claim a stage sightline
Expect mooncakes, bakery demos, and food booths as the reason to arrive before the densest mid-afternoon crush. Main Stage language points to Washington and Grant when the live page is current. Waverly Place photography or music pockets as possible side stops—confirm on-site maps. Cash and mobile pay both help when vendor lines move fast.
Stay close and leave the car
Expect Chinatown or North Beach lodging for evening walks after the 5 p.m. close. Plan for Union Square if you need hotel density and a short downhill walk. SFO via BART to Powell, then a walk or Stockton corridor hop. Layers for September fog even when the calendar says late summer.
Official information
Plan the rest of the trip
Sources
Last verified July 28, 2026. Event schedules, venues, and registration details can change; confirm with the organizer before booking travel.