05 June 2024

Traveling to Thailand? Have you thought about researching the festive and traditional events that might coincide with your stay? Here are all the Thai festivals and celebrations you need to know about to experience true immersion in local culture...

January

The festivals and celebrations to see and experience during a January trip to Thailand include:

New Year's Eve and New Year's Day

While the Thai new year doesn't align with the Western calendar, December 31st and January 1st are national holidays in Thailand. On New Year's Eve, you can enjoy fireworks in all major tourist cities, particularly in Bangkok where the display is spectacular.

Bo Sang Umbrella Festival

Since 1980, the Bo Sang village in northern Thailand has hosted the umbrella and artisan festival every third weekend of January, lasting 3 days. Streets and homes are decorated with the region's magnificent colorful parasols, and villagers parade with their finest umbrellas. Various entertainments including folk music, performances, and beauty pageants are also organized.

February

The festivals and celebrations to see and experience during a February trip to Thailand include:

Chinese New Year (January or February)

Each year between January 21st and February 21st, Chinese New Year is celebrated. For several days, Thai people of Chinese descent conduct major house cleanings to purify their homes and make offerings to their ancestors and Chinese deities. In major cities, particularly Bangkok's Chinatown, festivities including parades, dragon processions, dances, and Chinese cuisine celebrations are in full swing.

Discover our article to learn where to celebrate Chinese New Year in Thailand.

Makha Bucha

Makha Bucha is one of three significant national holidays marking key moments in Buddha's life. It falls on the full moon of the third lunar month and is a national holiday. This day commemorates the Great Assembly around Buddha in Veluwan Garden, when 1,250 disciples gathered to hear his teachings.

On this special day, Thai people participate in numerous rituals: they bring offerings to monks and temples, participate in candlelit processions around temples, purchase caged birds to release them...

Chiang Mai Flower Festival

The Flower Festival is a colorful event held annually in Chiang Mai. It typically takes place on the first Friday of February and lasts 3 days. Activities include a parade of flower-decorated floats, beauty competitions, dance, music, and gardening contests...

March

The festivals and celebrations to see and experience during a March trip to Thailand include:

National Elephant Day

Considered Thailand's national animal, the elephant holds sacred significance in Buddhist belief. It's no wonder the elephant has its own day: Thai Chiang Day (National Elephant Day). Thus, March 13th each year is dedicated to honoring these majestic creatures through celebrations organized nationwide, notably in Chiang Mai, Lampang, Kanchanaburi, and Surin.

April

The festivals and celebrations to see and experience during an April trip to Thailand include:

Songkran, Thai New Year

A festive, family-oriented, and religious celebration, Songkran is the country's most important festival. Regarded as the Thai Buddhist New Year, Songkran marks the transition to a new year according to the lunar calendar. The exact date is determined by the lunar calendar, but typically falls around April 12th.

Following tradition, Thai people first visit temples to offer gifts to monks and receive their blessings. The celebration continues with a massive water battle across the country in a wonderfully festive atmosphere!

Discover our article to learn where to celebrate Songkran during a Thailand trip.

May

The festivals and celebrations to see and experience during a May trip to Thailand include:

Royal Ploughing Ceremony

Also called the Sacred Furrow Festival, the Royal Ploughing Ceremony marks the opening of the rice-planting season. The date of this ritual is determined by astrologers to ensure good harvests and is announced by the Royal Household Bureau. The ceremony takes place at Sanam Luang in Bangkok.

During the ceremony, sacred oxen are harnessed to a wooden plough while rice seeds are sown by court brahmans. Plates of food with specific ingredients are then offered to the oxen. Based on their food choices, astrologers and brahmans subsequently predict whether the season will be abundant or not.

Coronation Day of King Rama X

May 4th marks the coronation date of King Rama X (His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn Phra Vajiraklaochaoyuhua), the current king of Thailand. This date is now a national holiday.

Visakha Bucha

Like Makha Bucha, Visakha Bucha is one of the most important days for Buddhists. A national holiday, it falls on the 15th day of the waxing moon of the sixth lunar month. This sacred day commemorates Buddha's birth, enlightenment, and death. Thai people visit temples to bring their offerings.

Bun Bang Fai, the Rocket Festival

Originating from Laos, Bun Bang Fai is a traditional Buddhist ceremony also celebrated in Northeast Thailand, particularly in the Isan region, at Yasothon, Ubon Ratchathani, and Nong Khai.

The festival spans several days with its highlight: a competition of homemade rockets crafted from bamboo and papier-mâché. Why rockets? Because they're considered means to reach the rain gods. These rituals aim to bring fertility and encourage upcoming harvests. Indeed, many phallic representations (symbols of fertility) are seen throughout the streets.

June

The festivals and celebrations to see and experience during a June trip to Thailand include:

Birthday of Queen Suthida of Thailand

June 3rd marks the birthday of Queen Suthida, wife of King Rama X and queen consort of Thailand since May 1st, 2019. This is a national holiday.

Phi Ta Khon, the Ghost Festival (between March and July)

The Phi Ta Khon Festival takes place annually in Dan Sai, a small village in Loei Province in the Isan region. The festival's opening date is set by the lunar calendar and can fall between March and July.

The festival's name is somewhat misleading since the term Phi Ta Khon ("ghost festival") only refers to the frenzied dance that opens the festivities. The event overall is called Boun Bhavet. It honors an episode from Buddha's life: when he was known as Prince Vessantara Jataka and returned from his journey when he was thought to be dead.

Over 3 days, numerous activities take place (dances, animist rituals, mask parades, ghost costumes, rocket competitions, spiritual contemplation…).

July

The festivals and celebrations to see and experience during a July trip to Thailand include:

Asahna Bucha

Following Makha Bucha and Visakha Bucha comes the celebration of Asahna Bucha. This sacred festival is a national holiday occurring on the full moon of the eighth lunar month. It celebrates Buddha's first sermon and the Four Noble Truths of Buddhism. Thai people return to their hometowns and visit temples to make offerings to monks and participate in ceremonies.

Khao Phansaa

The day following Asahna Bucha is Khao Phansaa, a festival marking the beginning of the Buddhist Lenten period, held on the first day of the waning moon of the eighth lunar month. From this date onward, monks remain confined in temples, focusing on texts, meditation, and prayer.

Candle Festival in Ubon Ratchathani

The Ubon Ratchathani Candle Festival takes place annually during Wan Asanha Bucha to mark the beginning of the Buddhist Lenten period. The program features a parade of floats decorated with candles sculpted by artists and a competition for the most beautiful candle. The parade is accompanied by dance performances, music, and light shows.

Other cities also host this festival, but Ubon Ratchathani's is the largest and most renowned in the country.

Birthday of His Majesty King Rama X of Thailand

July 28th marks the birthday of King Maha Vajiralongkorn (Rama X), the current king of Thailand. It's a national holiday featuring numerous celebrations (fireworks, parades, official ceremonies...) in his honor.

August

The festivals and celebrations to see and experience during an August trip to Thailand include:

Birthday of Queen Sirikit Kitiyakara and Mother's Day

August 12th marks the birthday of Sirikit Kitiyakara, former queen consort of Thailand and wife of King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX). Parades and celebrations take place throughout the country for the occasion. It's a national holiday also celebrating Mother's Day.

September

Vegetarian Festival (September-October)

Of Chinese tradition, the Thai Vegetarian Festival occurs annually during the ninth lunar month of the Chinese calendar (often between September and October). For 9 days, part of the population abstains from meat and observes several rituals (no sexual relations, no alcohol consumption, wearing white clothing...) to purify body and spirit.

Celebrations continue with ceremonies intended to invoke the gods, and participants are seen piercing their bodies with various objects (skewers, knives...) and performing astounding physical feats such as walking on hot coals.

Because the manifestations can take frightening turns, it's best to avoid attending with children or sensitive souls.

October

The festivals and celebrations to see and experience during an October trip to Thailand include:

Pavarana

After 3 months of retreat, the Buddhist Lenten period ends the day after the full moon of the eleventh month, with a ritual called Pavarana. At this time, monks leave their temples and are offered new saffron robes and food by residents.

Commemorative Day of the Death of King Rama IX

October 13th marks the death date of King Bhumibol, Rama IX, former king of Thailand, who died in 2016. It's a national holiday during which Thai people mourn.

Piyamaharaj Day

Translated as "day of the great beloved king," Piyamaharaj Day is celebrated in memory of King Chulalongkorn (Rama V), one of the kingdom's most respected monarchs. It corresponds to the date of his death.

November

The festivals and celebrations to see and experience during a November trip to Thailand include:

Loi Krathong, the Festival of Lights

Loi Krathong takes place on the first full moon of the twelfth lunar month. It's one of Thailand's most beautiful traditional festivals. Also known as the Festival of Lights, this festival of Brahmic origin offers an enchanting experience to all travelers who discover it.

Thousands of offerings illuminated by candles are placed on the country's waters to beseech Buddha. To deposit their offerings, Thai people create small traditional lotus-shaped rafts called krathong. Other activities (fireworks, parades, beauty competitions...) take place simultaneously.

Lopburi Monkey Festival

Located in the country's center, Lopburi is a small town known for its impressive macaque population. Each year, on the last Saturday or Sunday of November, the Lopburi Monkey Festival takes place, during which the population offers a giant buffet to the monkeys. This banquet is a sacred ritual given in homage to Hanuman, the Monkey God (the macaques being considered his descendants).

December

The festivals and celebrations to see and experience during a December trip to Thailand include:

Birthday of King Rama IX and Father's Day

December 5th is a national holiday marking the birthday of King Bhumibol (Rama IX), former king of Thailand. Parades and celebrations take place throughout the country. It's also the designated day for Father's Day.

Constitution Day

December 10th is a national holiday in Thailand as it commemorates the country's first constitution (dating from 1932), which allowed the transition from absolute monarchy to constitutional monarchy.

What about the Full Moon Party?

Attention all party-goers: the Full Moon Party occurs monthly during full moon nights on Haad Rin Beach on the island of Koh Phangan. Thousands of tourists from around the world come to dance all night to music with their feet in the sand. Discover all the Full Moon Party dates for the coming months.

Florine Dergelet

Florine Dergelet

A web writer for over 10 years, Florine Dergelet is a traveler driven by the desire to discover the world with an open heart. Each of her articles is an invitation to slow down, to listen, to understand. For her, traveling is not about checking countries off a map, but about weaving connections (often invisible but always powerful) with places, peoples, and all manner of creatures in the animal kingdom. Her philosophy? Advise travelers with ethics, awaken their consciousness about animal welfare, respect for cultures, and the importance of humble and sustainable tourism. Because the most beautiful memories are often born far from the spotlight, in the shadow of a path, at the edge of a conversation, or in the quiet breath of a world we finally take the time to listen to…