The Lunar New Year—often referred to as the Chinese New Year—kicked off on February 5, initiating the Year of the Pig. It is celebrated across eastern Asia and various countries celebrate with both commonly held traditions and unique rituals.

In 1930, there were fewer than 30 Chinese residents in Houston, by 1950 there were just an estimated 1,000 Chinese residents in the city. Fast forward more than half a century. According to the 2010 census, there were 43,940 of Chinese descent in Harris county. As the most diverse city in the nation, each major ethnic group in Greater Houston saw a population increase, but the Asian population is the fastest growing. That growth has a direct reflection on Houston Airports.

Not only do we serve three destinations in Southeast Asia including China, but, we welcomed China’s exclusive national flag carrier Air China to Houston in 2013 with nonstop flights to Beijing. Japanese foreign flag carrier All Nippon Airways (ANA) launched flights from Houston in 2015 with nonstop service to Tokyo. EVA Air also entered the Houston market in 2015 with nonstop service to Taipei.  United Airlines also serves destinations in China and Southeast Asia

As the Houston Airports mission states, “We exist to connect the people, businesses, cultures and economies of the world to Houston.” And we aim to create that experience from the curb to the gate. The experience for our customers traveling between Houston and Southeast Asia starts with a  Chinese-language version of award-winning fly2houston website. Travelers using the fly2houston.com website can choose the Chinese language option on the home page, or if their smart device has Chinese as a preferred language, a box promoting the Chinese microsite will pop up automatically. Check them out at  fly2houston.com/iah/chinese or fly2houston.com/hou/chinese.

In addition, our concessions program offers dining options with cuisine from East Asia including, Panda Express, Pick Up Stix, Zori Bistro, and Yume at IAH and Hunan Return of the Phoenix at Hobby.

Houston Airports wishes you happiness, prosperity and many red envelopes.