All You Need to Know About Festivals in Thailand!
JanuaryThe New Year is as big an event in Thailand as anywhere else in the world, as the New Year ushers in new beginnings. Many cultural festivities and Buddhist rituals surround the celebration of The New Year in Thailand.The Bo Sang Umbrella and San Kamphaeng Festival is worth checking out if you want to experience some of the most stunning handcrafted parasols and other goods made by the people of Thailand. This is a festival celebrating handicrafts and culture, offering contests and exhibitions, cultural performances and local entertainment as well. FebruaryThe Bangkok International Film Festival broadcasts a variety of movies and also plays host to a variety of specialty showings, festivals and galas during the month of February.Another Thailand festival worth experiencing is the Chiang Mai Flower Festival, which is a culmination of a variety of bright and beautiful Thai flowers and other festive celebrations including beauty contests. MarchMakha Bucha Day is a festival in Thailand that honors 1500 monks that gathered to listen to a sermon by Lord Buddha. Many celebrations and festivities are held during Makha Bucha Day. Another celebration during the month of March is the Pattaya Music Festival which showcases a variety of musicians, singers and music performers from all over the world who culminate here to share a love of music.AprilAs April 19 is the New Year for many Asian calendars, one of April’s festivals in Thailand is known as Songkran Festival, which is a water festival. This festival can last between three and 10 days depending on the festival’s location, and one of its primary characteristics is that it involves splashing water on those celebrating.MayMay signifies the beginning of the harvesting season, and so many of the festivals in Thailand held during this time period are devoted to farming and harvesting. Much of Thailand’s population is comprised of farmers, and so agriculture plays a very important role in the nation’s culture. Rocket Festival involves celebrating in the streets of Thailand’s farming villages, primarily in hope of a bountiful harvest. The Royal Ploughing Ceremony is also held in this month, kicking off the beginning of rice harvesting for the year.JunePhi Ta Khoon, held in Thailand in June, honors a Buddhist tale. It was presumed that Buddha had passed away during a long journey, but he returned after a time and was thought to be resurrected. In commemoration of this tale, men don masks signifying ghosts and dance.JulyIn July, Buddhist Rain Retreat is held. This is a retreat for monks, and a festival is held in celebration of its beginning. This festival is regarded as the candle festival, or Khao Phalsa.SeptemberUm Phra Dam Nam is known as the Bathing Buddha ceremony, and this festival is held annually in September. The ceremony is based on lore surrounding a Buddha statue found in the Pasak River. Despite being taken from the river, legend says that it returned twice itself upon disappearing from the temple. The statue is immersed in the river annually, making the waters sacred.OctoberThe Vegetarian festival in Thailand during the month of October is held over nine days, and involves refusing to consume alcohol or meat throughout the ceremony.NovemberLoy Krathong Sai is known as the Festival of Lights in Thailand, and is a stunning evening affair where ornately-decorated Krathongs, banana leaf floats, are adorned with incense, candles and other decorations and set afloat in waterways throughout the area.This is just a sampling of the Thailand festival offering that you will find upon arriving. There are new and interesting festivals being held through every month of the year, and something is always going on that you can participate in while visiting. These festivals Thailand offers are often in observance of memorable occasions or in worship to spirits or the Buddha. Each of these festivals in Thailand is of vital importance to the people in the region where it is celebrated.
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Each Thailand festival has a specific purpose, and many have been celebrated throughout the country’s history. No matter when you visit Thailand, you are sure to experience at least one of the many beautiful and extravagant festivals of Thailand. Some festivals are better known than others, such as the Loy Krathong and Songkran festivals, which are festive and colorful. There are also a wide variety of other festivals in Thailand that you should not miss if you are in the area when they are held.
