Golden Week is the name for two holiday weeks in Asia: Japan's run of public holidays from 29 April to 5 May, and China's National Day holiday from 1 October. Both are peak times for travel, shopping and family days out. The best Golden Week campaign ideas fit how people spend those days: a daily holiday calendar, a travel personality test, a family photo competition for Children's Day, or a QR-code game in shops that welcome visitors from Japan and China. Plan four to six weeks ahead and have the campaign live before the first day off.
Golden Week matters for brands selling in Japan or China, and for travel, hospitality and retail businesses in Europe that welcome visitors from those countries. Below you'll find how the two Golden Weeks work, the 2027 and 2028 dates, a planning timeline and 10 campaign ideas with the right game format for each, plus prizes, consent and local rules.
What Is Golden Week?
Golden Week in Japan
Japan's Golden Week (ゴールデンウィーク, often shortened to GW) is a cluster of national holidays at the end of April and start of May. Together with nearby weekends, it gives many people one of the longest breaks of the year:
- 29 April: Shōwa Day (昭和の日)
- 3 May: Constitution Memorial Day (憲法記念日)
- 4 May: Greenery Day (みどりの日)
- 5 May: Children's Day (こどもの日), when families fly carp streamers (koinobori) for their children
It's one of the busiest travel periods in Japan, both at home and abroad. Many people also stay home to avoid the crowds and shop online. Mother's Day in Japan follows on the second Sunday in May.
Golden Week in China
In China, "golden week" (黄金周) usually means the National Day holiday from 1 October, which is typically seven days long. The May Day holiday from 1 May is sometimes called a golden week too. Both are major times for domestic and outbound travel and for shopping. The government publishes the exact days off each year, often with weekend working days moved to make the break longer. For 2026, for example, the official holiday arrangement set the National Day holiday as 1 to 7 October and May Day as 1 to 5 May.
When Is Golden Week 2027 and 2028?
Japan. The holiday dates are fixed by law (Cabinet Office). If a holiday falls on a Sunday, the next working day becomes a substitute holiday.
| Japan | 2027 | 2028 |
|---|---|---|
| Shōwa Day, 29 April | Thursday | Saturday |
| Constitution Memorial Day, 3 May | Monday | Wednesday |
| Greenery Day, 4 May | Tuesday | Thursday |
| Children's Day, 5 May | Wednesday | Friday |
| Longest break without taking leave | 1–5 May (5 days) | 3–7 May (5 days) |
| Mother's Day | Sunday 9 May | Sunday 14 May |
In 2027, anyone who takes Friday 30 April off gets seven days in a row from 29 April. In 2028, taking 1 and 2 May off gives nine days from 29 April to 7 May.
China. National Day is always 1 October, but the length and exact days of the holiday are announced by the government each year, usually in the autumn before. When the Mid-Autumn Festival falls close to 1 October, the two holidays can be joined. In 2028, Mid-Autumn falls on 3 October, according to the Hong Kong Observatory's calendar, so check the official arrangement before you set dates.
Our free marketing calendar helps you line Golden Week up with your other dates.
Where Golden Week Campaigns Run
Inside mainland China, campaigns usually run on local platforms and apps, and Scratcher doesn't integrate with those. In Japan, your website, email, the messaging apps you already use and social media all work as places to share a game link.
Scratcher fits the channels you control:
- Your website and webshop, for customers in Japan and Chinese-speaking customers worldwide
- Your newsletter and SMS list
- QR codes in hotels, shops, museums, attractions and airports that welcome visitors from Japan or China
- Social media you already run in those markets
Golden Week Planning Timeline
| When | What to do |
|---|---|
| 6 weeks before | Choose the goal: bookings, sales, sign-ups or visits. Pick one main idea. |
| 5 weeks before | Build the game, write texts in Japanese or Chinese with a native speaker, set prizes and odds. |
| 4 weeks before | Connect your email tool or CRM. Print QR codes for physical locations. |
| 2 weeks before | Tease the campaign. Travel decisions are made before the holiday, so be visible early. |
| During Golden Week | Go live. Change the daily prize if you run a calendar. |
| After | Draw winners, follow up, and in Japan move straight into Mother's Day. |
10 Golden Week Campaign Ideas
1. A daily holiday calendar
What it is: One door for each day of the break, from 29 April to 5 May in Japan or 1 to 7 October in China, each with a small game and a new prize. It gives people a daily reason to come back while they have time on their hands.
Channel: Newsletter, SMS and app.
Format: Campaign calendar
2. What kind of traveller are you?
What it is: A travel personality test that suggests a destination, hotel or trip from your range. It suits travel brands, airlines, tourism boards and luggage. Read our lessons from the travel industry.
Channel: Social media and website.
Format: Personality test
3. Children's Day family photo competition
What it is: Families share a photo of their day out or their carp streamers, and the community votes. Make sure the terms cover photos of children and parental consent.
Channel: Social media and website.
Format: Photo competition
4. Stay-at-home high score
What it is: For everyone avoiding the crowds, a skill game with a daily prize for the best score.
Channel: Social media and app.
Format: Drop game or puzzle game with a leaderboard
5. Welcome game for visitors
What it is: A QR code in your shop, hotel lobby or attraction opens a scratch card with a same-day gift for visitors from Japan or China. Make the codes with our QR code generator and read QR codes in store.
Channel: Shops, hotels and attractions.
Format: Scratch card
6. Sign up before you travel
What it is: Travellers sign up before the trip and get a gift to collect in your shop or at your venue. You know they're coming, and they have a reason to visit.
Channel: Social ads and website.
Format: Pre-registration
7. Find the spots on the map
What it is: An interactive city or venue map with hidden hotspots. Find them all, sign up and enter the draw. It works for tourism boards, shopping districts and museums.
Channel: Website and QR codes on site.
Format: Interactive graphic
8. Destination quiz
What it is: Five questions about a destination, its food or its customs, with a trip or voucher in the draw. It builds interest in the next holiday.
Channel: Newsletter and social media.
Format: Quiz
9. Holiday sale wheel
What it is: For e-commerce, a spin with a holiday offer on every slice. Many people shop online during the break.
Channel: Website pop-up.
Format: Spin the wheel
10. After-trip survey with a prize draw
What it is: When people are home, ask how the trip was and what they'd like next time. Everyone who answers enters a draw.
Channel: Email.
Format: Survey
More ideas: the free competition idea generator.
Prize Ideas
- A trip, hotel night or experience, in travel and hospitality
- Products for a day out: outdoor gear, picnic sets, family treats
- Many small instant prizes: codes, free shipping, a gift to collect in store
- A gift for Mother's Day, if your campaign runs into early May in Japan
Use the prize odds calculator to set the number of prizes and the discount code generator for unique codes.
Collecting Sign-ups and Consent
- Ask before the result, and keep the form short.
- Consent: A clear, unticked checkbox. The consent text generator helps you word it.
- Language: You write all campaign texts yourself, so you can run in Japanese, Chinese and English side by side. Ask native speakers to write or check them.
- Fair play: One entry per email address or phone number, and throwaway email addresses blocked.
- Terms: The competition terms generator gives you a draft.
Check Local Rules
Japan limits prizes in promotions under the Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations. According to the Consumer Affairs Agency, in a prize draw linked to a purchase, each prize may be worth at most 20 times the purchase value (under ¥5,000) or ¥100,000 (¥5,000 or more), and all prizes together at most 2% of the expected sales. Mainland China's 2020 Interim Provisions on Regulating Promotional Activities cap the top prize in a lottery-style prize promotion at ¥50,000 and require you to publish the prize details before you start; China revised its Anti-Unfair Competition Law in 2025, so check with a local lawyer which rules apply today. For Europe, see competitions and GDPR. This article is general information, not legal advice.
What to Measure
- Sign-ups during the holiday, by market and language
- Conversion rate from game visit to sign-up
- In-store redemptions from visitors, if you run a QR game
- Bookings or orders linked to the campaign
- Cost per lead compared with your other channels
Tag links with the UTM builder and calculate the return with the campaign ROI calculator.
FAQ
When is Golden Week 2027 in Japan?
The holidays are Thursday 29 April and Monday 3 to Wednesday 5 May 2027. With the weekend, that gives five days off in a row from 1 to 5 May, or seven if people take 30 April off.
What is Golden Week in China?
In China, Golden Week usually means the National Day holiday from 1 October, typically seven days long. The May Day holiday is sometimes called a golden week too. The government announces the exact days each year.
Is Golden Week good for marketing?
Yes, for travel, leisure, retail and e-commerce. People have time off, travel and shop. Be live before the holiday starts, because many travel and gift decisions are made in advance.
How can a European brand use Golden Week?
Welcome visitors from Japan and China with QR-code games in shops, hotels and attractions, and reach Japanese and Chinese-speaking customers through your website and newsletter.
Plan Your Golden Week Campaign
In Japan, Golden Week sits between White Day and Mother's Day (see our Mother's Day and Father's Day campaign ideas). In China, the October Golden Week comes soon after the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Scratcher has 40+ game formats, 150+ templates and Rex, an AI assistant that builds a campaign design from your website. Start your free 14-day trial (no credit card needed) or book a meeting and we'll help you plan it.
