Celebrating the Year of the Snake, people attend the 27th New Year Firecracker Ceremonies during Chinese Lunar New Year Celebrations at Sara D. Roosevelt Park in Manhattan's Chinatown neighborhood, New York,

As millions of people around the world celebrate the Lunar New Year, a cultural kick off -- in the form of the Firecracker Festival -- packed the streets of Chinatown on Wednesday.

Jan. 29 ushers in the Year of the Snake (the Wood Snake, to be specific). Here are some of the best ways to celebrate the Lunar New Year around the city:

The Lunar New Year celebrations are kicking off in New York City on Wednesday. It’s the year of the snake – and those born under the Chinese zodiac sign are said to have wisdom, intuition and charm. PIX11’s Kirstin Cole has a preview of all the events happening to welcome the

New Yorkers rang in the Lunar New Year at Chinatown's annual firecracker ceremony on Wednesday (January 29). Spectators celebrated the Year of the Snake with a celebratory lion dance and the snap, crackle and pop of firecrackers.

Big Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations took place in Chinatown on Wednesday. FOX 5 NY's Meredith Gorman takes us to the 27th annual firecracker ceremony and cultural festival.

Among China’s traditional holidays and celebrations, none ranks higher in importance than the Lunar New Year (農曆新年). Also known as the Spring Festival (春節), or simply Chinese New Year, it marks the beginning of the year according to the traditional lunar calendar.

Lunar New Year festivals and prayers marked the start of the Year of the Snake around Asia and farther afield on Wednesday. (AP video shot by Syawalludin Zain, Taijing Wu)