The Lunar New Year has arrived and Pokemon GO players can start the celebrations with some exciting bonuses and special spawns.
Pokémon GO Lunar New Year Event Date and Bonuses
The Lunar New Year event is back once again. The annual Pokémon GO event kicks off today, and the 2026 version offers players the chance to take advantage of some Lucky trade boosts and potentially encounter a few special shiny spawns.
The Lunar New Year 2026 event begins on February 17, 2026 at 10:00 AM local time and players can enjoy the activities until Saturday, February 21, 2026, at 8:00 PM local time.
During the event, players can enjoy the following bonuses:
- Increased chance to get Lucky Pokémon in trades
- Increased chance to become Lucky Friends
- PokéStops may turn gold without a Golden Lure Module
- Increased chance to encounter Shiny Blitzle, Shiny Darumaka, and Shiny Gimmighoul
Wild Encounters
The following Pokémon are appearing more frequently in the wild during the Lunar New Year 2026 event:
- Ponyta
- Galarian Ponyta
- Fuecoco
- Blitzle
- Darumaka
There is an increased chance to encounter Shiny Blitzle and Darumaka in the wild.
Lunar New Year 2026 Collection Challenge
Players who collect the following Pokémon will complete the collection challenge and earn the special rewards:
- Magikarp
- Shuckle
- Fuecoco
- Sizzlipede
- Tepig
- Darumaka
Collection Challenge Rewards:
- Turtonator
- 2400 Stardust
Lunar New year 2026 Paid Timed Research – All Tasks and Rewards
This event offers players the option to spend $1.99 to unlock the Paid Timed Research. This event’s exclusive research just includes one step, so it’s a fairly quick and easy one to finish once it’s unlocked.
Here are all of the tasks and rewards included in the Lunar New Year Paid Timed Research:
- Catch 2 Pokémon – Blitzle
- Catch 2 Pokémon – Darumaka
- Catch 4 Pokémon – Blitzle
- Catch 4 Pokémon – Darumaka
- Catch 6 Pokémon – Blitzle
- Catch 6 Pokémon – Darumaka
- Catch 8 Pokémon – Blitzle
- Catch 8 Pokémon – Darumaka
- Catch 12 Pokémon – Blitzle
- Catch 12 Pokémon – Darumaka
- Catch 15 Pokémon – Blitzle
- Catch 15 Pokémon – Darumaka
Completion Rewards:
- 200 Poke Coins
- 2 Lucky Eggs
- 1 Incense
That should be just about everything players need to know to dive into the Lunar New Year event and get started. Keep in mind that the activities wrap up on Saturday, so there are only a few days to take advantage of these bonuses.
Pokémon GO is available now on mobile devices in select regions.
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