Chinese people are supposed to stay up the whole night on the 30th day of the 12th month in the Lunar Calendar
臘月三十，人們熬夜守歲。

In Chinese mythology, a monster called nian would come out to harm people on New Year's Eve, so people get together, staying up and chatting, hoping for a peaceful passage of time. The custom of staying up (Chinese: shou tai sui) symbolizes the warding off of all diseases and disasters and wishing good luck in the New Year.
中國神話里，一頭叫“年”的妖怪會在新年的前一夜跑出來傷害人類，因此人們聚在一起，守歲聊天，祈禱能平安度過這一晚。因此，中國人將新年前夕熬夜的習(xí)俗稱為“守太歲”，意味著遠離疾病災(zāi)禍，祈禱新年好運。

Chinese people attach great importance to the Spring Festival Eve, when all family members eat dinner together.
中國人十分重視除夕（即新年前一夜），彼時闔家團圓，共享團圓年夜飯。