The Mid-Autumn Festival is also known as the Moon Festival, Reunion Festival and Mid-August Festival. Moon worshipping ceremonies, held mainly within palace compounds, were recorded in China as early as Qin and Han Dynasties (circa 200 BC) and dutifully maintained on a grand scale by succeeding emperors in Mid-Autumn each year - the Moon Temple in Beijing was a site for such activities. Eventually the custom became established nationwide and, on the night of the Festival, whole families would gather in the courtyard where incense burners and candle sticks were placed, and make offerings to the Moon with mooncakes, water melons, pomelos, taros, bananas, persimmons, water caltrops and peanuts. Afterwards one would drink reunion wine and eat reunion dinner, followed by mooncakes which would be divided up according to the number of people present, and shared by all, so mooncakes are also called reunion cakes. Documented in Song Dynasty (circa 1000 AD), mooncakes became an item of food for formal occasions during Ming Dynasty (circa 1400 AD), and people would give them to each other as presents.

Around the Mid-Autumn Festival children would play with a toy, known by the name of grandpa rabbit, that is closely related to Moon worshipping. It is made of clay with a chalky face, wearing a battledress, holding a long spear and carrying colourful pennants on its back. According to folklore, we can find on the Moon not only the Toad, but also the Rabbit (often called the Jade Rabbit or Gold Rabbit) and the Cinnamon Tree, and in the past when people worshipped the Moon they would also make offerings to the Rabbit. Nowadays, in some parts of China, grandpa rabbits are still exquisitely made for children to play with during the Festival, and for grown-ups to use as mascots.

Every year during the Mid-Autumn Festival, with the weather being bright and breezy, people would go outdoors to admire the Moon and lotus flowers and, for the few days following fullmoon, go on boat trips to gaze at the waning but still majestic Moon. Apart from these activities, the womenfolk would grow flowering plants and wear flowers on their heads, in keeping with the saying that "Long may the flowers bloom and the Moon wax". Apparently the ancient Chinese, both young and old, also loved to watch cricket-fights during the Festival, and it was claimed that it had something to do with one's desire for the birth of a son. Operas and acrobatic shows are also popular, and people everywhere would enjoy the fun and games of the Festival deep into the night.