Hundreds in the Chinese city of Wuhan visited a popular local Buddhist temple, where they burned incense and prayed for good luck and health in 2021.

By late morning, a queue of people waiting to pay their respects had formed and snaked around the perimeter of the temples walls.

Similarly, in India, priests conducted rituals on the bank of the Ganges River and many visited temples.

Some prayed for the well being and happiness of their families and ask for guidance for the upcoming year.

Thousands of people in Japan, where New Year is the biggest holiday in the calendar, visited Tokyo's Meiji Shrine to pray for an end to tough times.

Those celebrations worldwide had largely been toned down the night before, some festivities did go ahead.

Vietnam's capital, Hanoi, was packed with people one of the very few cities around the world where large crowds were allowed to gather.

Many other nations, like the U.

A.

E and Egypt, opted for extravagant firework displays.

Instead, New York's usually heaving Times Square was quiet.

For the most part, low key celebrations took place with just a handful of invited guests.

England's capital, London, bore similar relatively samba scenes, though unofficial firework displays bright into the sky at midnight, the streets were largely empty.