Canton Fair Spring vs Autumn: Use the Session That Is Actually Printed

Last fact-checked: November 10, 2026.

Canton Fair spring versus autumn is a choice you can make only for sessions the organiser has printed. The next printed session, on the exhibition-date page updated 5 November 2026, is the 141st: phase 1 on 15-19 April 2027, phase 2 on 23-27 April 2027, phase 3 on 1-5 May 2027. Autumn 2027 dates were not on that page, and they were not on the session page updated 5 May 2026. Until they are, "next autumn" is a blank cell.

The long version of those lists is dates, phases and product groups, then phase 1, phase 2, and phase 3. How a single day sits inside the clock that is actually printed is opening time and a day plan.

The dates that exist

The 140th phase 3 starts on 31 October, not on the first of the next month. Copying the 141st shape backward, or the 140th shape forward, is how a buyer misses a day. The May page also prints negotiation time as 9:30-18:00. The November page does not repeat that line. No page opened for this check says which session draws more people. That comparison is unavailable, so it is not a reason to pick spring or autumn.

One phase is the default

Pick the session from the product, then from the supplier, then from the paperwork. Ask which printed session they can sample in. This page will not guess that factories are quieter in one season. The pre-registration notice published 19 August 2026 says invitation applications are open. It does not print a visa processing time. An invitation is not a visa.

Phase 1 on the November page is the industrial and electrical list. Phase 2 runs through furniture and stops there. Phase 3 is toys, apparel, textiles, and the other consumer groups on that page. The May 2026 session page still prints an import exhibition on its phase 2 and phase 3 lists. The November phase 2 text does not. For 2027, use the November lists.

A toy buyer who booked the wrong week of spring

A buyer wants toys for a holiday range and books "the spring fair" as 15 April 2027 because spring sounds like April. Toys are on the phase 3 list, 1-5 May 2027. April 15-19 is a real fair week. It is the industrial and electrical list. The toy exhibitors are not called for that week on the page this buyer should have read. The case is a calendar example. It is not a forecast of who will be busy, and it is not a named company.

The repair is a date change to 1-5 May 2027. The same buyer also wants a gift box. Gifts are phase 2, 23-27 April 2027, a second published range, not a reason to attend phase 1. Between those ranges, 28-30 April 2027 is not on the November list, so it stays notes rather than booths. They also see the 140th phase 3 start on 31 October 2026 and do not write that day into 2027. If the supplier can only sample in an autumn session that is still undated, the buyer waits for the organiser to print it. The badge guide is the credential, separate from the session choice.

Pitfalls

• Using the word "spring" as if it were one week. The 141st spring session is three date ranges and two gaps.
• Putting toys, apparel, or home textiles on 15-19 April 2027. Those groups are on the May list in the November page.
• Copying the 140th phase 3 start, 31 October, forward into 2027. Autumn 2027 was not printed on the pages checked.
• Choosing a session because it is "busier." No attendance comparison was used here, including older buyer counts on earlier pages.
• Treating 9:30-18:00 as a line the November page repeated. It is on the May 2026 session page. Reopen both before you promise a meeting time.
• Booking a hall appointment on 20-22 April or 28-30 April 2027. Those dates are absent from the 141st list. The page does not call them open.
• Reading the May 2026 import-exhibition line as if it were part of the November phase 2 list. The November phase 2 text stops at furniture.

Checklist before the session is booked

• 141st dates were copied from the page updated 5 November 2026, not from a third-party calendar.
• The product sits on one of the three November lists, and the dates beside that list are the ones in the diary.
• Autumn 2027 is still blank.
• The 140th phase 3 start is remembered as 31 October 2026, and is not reused as a 2027 guess.
• The supplier was asked which printed session they can sample in.
• No crowd figure was the reason for the choice.
• Gap days are empty of booth meetings until the organiser lists them.

Questions the pages leave open

Has autumn 2027 been dated?

Not on the pages retrieved 10 November 2026. The 140th row above is the last autumn the May page prints. A later page from the organiser can fill the cell. A blog calendar cannot.

Is spring better than autumn?

Unavailable. Use the phase that lists your product, in a session the supplier can actually sample. Better is not a headcount, and this check did not find a headcount that answers the question.

Do I attend all three phases to be safe?

Attend the phase that holds the goods. A second phase is a second list you really buy. The gap days are not extra hall time on the November page.

A range you want checked against those lists can go on the RFQ form or the buying-trip page.

The fair logistics around this are badge and registration fees, whether a small buyer should go, the Pazhou hall map, and Canton Fair versus Global Sources.

Official sources

• 141st exhibition dates, published 4 November 2026, updated 5 November 2026.
• Session page with the 139th and 140th dates, updated 5 May 2026.
• Pre-registration and invitation notice, published 19 August 2026.