Thailand Festivals 2020

Thailand Festival Guide 2020

Thai Festivals celebrate the history, traditions, Buddhist religion, culture & spiritual beliefs. They can be crazy, cool or bizarre, or sometimes a combination of all three. They are usually vibrant, colorful events that will bring a smile to your face in the ?land of smiles?. Imagine hundreds of brightly lit lanterns ascending into the night sky, giant water fights in the street, or colorfully costumed locals in scary masks. You can see all that and more at Thailand Festivals in 2020. Note that many Thai festivals are determined by the lunar calendar so they are not always on the same date each year. Read on for all you need to know about the most popular Thai Festivals in our Thailand Festival Guide 2020.

Thailand Festival Guide ? The Top 10 Thai Festivals 2020

• Songkran Water Festival 2020: 13th to 15th April all over Thailand
• Loy Krathong Festival 2020: 31st October all over Thailand
• Yi Peng Lantern Festival 2020: 31st October to 1st November in Chiang Mai
• Phi Ta Khon Ghost Festival 2020: 26th to 28th June in Dan Sai, Loei
• Chinese New Year 2020 ? 25th January all over Thailand
• Wai Kru Muay Thai Festival 2020 ? 17th March in Ayutthaya
• Yasothon Rocket Festival 2020: 8th to 10th May in Yasothon
• Ubon Ratchathani Candle Festival 2020: 5th to 6th July in Ubon Ratchathani
• King Narai Fair Festival 2020: 14th to 23rd February in Lopburi
• Lopburi Monkey Festival 2020: 29th November in Lopburi

Chinese New Year is a Chinese festival celebrating the beginning of a new year based on the traditional Chinese lunar calendar. It is also known as the Spring Festival and celebrated by Chinese communities around the world.The first day of the new year is when the new full moon appears between the 21st of January and 20th February.

When is Chinese New Year 2020?

The date of Chinese New Year for 2020 is Saturday 25th January. The biggest celebrations will be held on Yaowarat;Road in Chinatown. Bangkok?s Chinatown is the world?s largest and is home to a large Thai Chinese community. Yaowarat Road becomes a walking street full of food stalls & entertainment. Celebrations are also held at many temples and shrines in the area and around the city.

The Chinese Lantern Festival (Luan Xiao Festival or Spring Lantern Festival) is an annual event held during Chinese New Year and celebrated by Chinese communities around the world. Traditionally lanterns are displayed at homes, public places & businesses. There are several lantern festival in Thailand. The most colorful Chinese Lantern Festival in Bangkok is held at the Siam Tai Tien Kong Temple in Samut Prakan which is also known as the Katanyu Foundation.

When is the Chinese Lantern Festival 2020?

The Chinese Lantern Festival 2020 runs from January 24 until February 16th.

Makha Bucha Day is a Buddhist festival. It is one of the most important Thai Festivals for Buddhists & occurs on the full moon of the third month of the lunar calendar. Makha Bucha is also celebrated in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Sri Lanka. Makha Bucha Day in Thailand is a public holiday so that all Thai?s have the opportunity to visit their local temple to take part in the celebration. On a leap year, Makha Bucha takes place on the full moon of the fourth lunar month.

When is Makha Bucha 2020?

The Thai Festival of Makha Bucha is on February 8th and is celebrated in temples all over Thailand.?

The King Narai Reign Fair is a popular Thai festival that celebrates the reign of King Narai the Great who ruled the Kingdom of Ayutthaya from 1656 to 1688. The fair is held in the ancient King Narai?s Palace in the city of Lopburi. Highlights of the King Narai Reign Fair are a parade through the town center, sound and light shows, cultural displays & performances, the changing of the guard at the palace, a retro market, a food fair, flower displays and a candlelit Buddhist ceremony.

When is the King Narai Fair 2020?

The King Narai Festival 2020 runs from February 14th to 23rd at King Narai?s Palace in Lopburi.

The Ayutthaya World Heritage Fairis an annual Thai festival celebrating the history & cultural traditions of the ancient capital city of Siam. This year the festival will feature an opening parade, a sound & light show, a retro market, cultural performances, a food fair, a walking street, beauty pageants & other competitions. Many historical landmarks will be specially illuminated at night. The wearing of traditional Thai costume is encouraged but not compulsory. There will also be a Red Cross Fair at Wat Phra Ram.

When is the Ayutthaya World Heritage Fair 2020?

The Ayutthaya World Heritage Fair 2020 will run from 13th March until the 22nd March. It will be held at Wat Mahathat & other locations in the historical park. The opening procession will be in the afternoon of March 13th.?

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Ayutthaya World Heritage Fair Sound & Light Show 2020

Monday ? Thursday at 19.30 to 20.30

Friday ? Sunday at 19.00 to 20.00 & 20.30 to 21.30

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How much are Sound & Light Show tickets?

Normal Ticket ? 200 baht

VIP Ticket ? 500 baht (with English Audio Soundtrack)

Student Ticket ? 50 baht

Tickets are sold on the day on a first come first served basis.

Learn more about Ayutthaya

*** The 2020 event has now been cancelled due to Coronovirus Epidemic ***

The Wai Kru Muay Thai Ceremony is an annual Thai Festival held in the ancient city of Ayutthaya, on March 16th-17th. Muay Thai boxers from around the world gather to pay respect to their teachers & to pay homage to Nai Khanom Tom, a legendary Muay Thai warrior hero. There is live Muay Thai boxing, demonstrations of fighting techniques & Muay Ram dances, a market, an historical re-enactment & the festival climax, a mass Muay Ram.

What date is Wai Kru Muay Thai Festival 2020?

The Wai Kru Muay Thai Festival 2020 will be held at Wat Jao Prab in Ayutthaya on 16th & 17th March 2020. The ceremony is on the 17th. The venue is near to Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya Hospital.

***The Wai Kru Muay Thai Festival 2020 has been cancelled due to the Coronovirus***

The most famous of all Thai Festivals is the Songkran Festival also known as the Water Festival. To tourists it is best known for its water fights but for Thai people, it?s a time to return home, get together with family, visit the temple, pay respect to their elders, make merit & take part in traditional activities.

If you want to join in a Songkran water fight in Bangkok, head for Khaosan Road, Siam Square or Central World for water fights.

Songkran in Thailand

Outside Bangkok, both Chiang Mai & Pattaya have 7 to 10 day water fights. If you want to experience a traditional Thailand Festival in 2020, head for the Retro Songkran Splendours Festival at the ancient Sukhothai Historical Park. To learn more about a traditional Thai Songkran, click on the link below.

What date is Songkran 2020?

The official Songkran date is 13th to 15th of April 2020. However, Songkran Festival activities are extended in Pattaya & Chiang Mai.

The Kaeng Khoi World War 2 Festival in Saraburi province is held every year from April 2-4. The three-day event features a riverside Sound & Light show depicting the lives of people in Kaeng Khoi district during the Second World War. Kaeng Khoi is an important railway junction and was a major Japanese military base during the war. It was famously bombed by allied air forces on 3rd April 1945 killing many Japanese soldiers & local people.

The event? commemorates those who died in the air raids, both Thai & Japanese. Local people dress in retro clothing reminiscent of the era and there are many activities with a retro theme. The sound & light show is free.

The Yasothon Rocket Festival or Bun Bung Fai Festival is held annually in the town of Yasothon in northeastern Thailand. It is yet another unique Thai Festival that features the firing of hundreds of homemade rockets into the sky. The purpose is to please the god of rain & sacred spirits in the hope of bringing enough rain to ensure a bountiful harvest.?

Yasothon Rocket Festival 2020 Schedule

• May 9th ? There will be a parade through the town of the rockets carried on floats & carts. The parade will feature local There will also be traditional cultural shows, live music, street food & a market.
• May 10th ? The rockets will be launched There is a prize for the rocket that goes highest and furthest.

When is the Yasothon Rocket Festival 2020?

The Yasothon Rocket Festival 2020 will be held on the 8th to 10th of May. The parade will be held on Saturday 9th with the rocket launching on Sunday 10th. The venue is Phaya Taen Park.

The Phi Ta Khon Festival known as the Ghost Festival is a colorful mask festival held every year in the village of Dan Sai in North East Thailand. It is held over three days and involves parades, dancing, Buddhist rituals, ceremonies, and the firing of home-made rockets into the sky. The highlight of the festival is the parade where local people dress up in colorful costumes and masks decorated with scary painted faces.

The idea is to disguise themselves as spirits or ghosts. They carry a variety of objects such as swords, axes, spears and phallic charms. Bells are tied to the waist. The purpose of the parade is to bring luck and good fortune to the village before the rice crop is planted. Phi Ta Khon is one of the Thailand Festivals 2020 that you should not miss.

When is Phi Ta Khon Festival 2020?

The Phi Ta Khon Festival 2020 will be held on June 26th-28th in the village of DanSai in Loei Province, Northeast Thailand.

*Phi Ta Khon Festival 2020 is canceled due to COVID19* See you next year!

There are several amazing Thai festivals in July.Khao Phansa is one of the most celebrated Buddhist festivals in Thailand. It falls on the day after the full moon of the eighth lunar month. It is the start of Buddhist Lent which marks the official start of the rainy season. Khao Phansa Day 2020 is on the 6th July and is celebrated all around Thailand with several unique events.

Khao Phansa Festivals

• The most famous celebrations are held at Phra Phutthabat Temple in Saraburi province. Wat Phra Phutthabat is a royal temple with a beautiful viharn housing the most famous Buddha’s footprint in Thailand. The highlights are a parade through the town led by royal pink elephants & a merit making ceremony where special flowers are offered to monks as they climb the stairway to the Buddha’s footprint.
• The other famous celebration is the Candle Festival in Ubon Ratchathani. Beautifully carved candles made of beeswax are paraded through the city on floats before being presented to local temples.
• In Surin, there is also a candle festival, as well as a “merit-making” ceremony done on elephant back. This takes place at a local Buddhist monument called “Phaya Surin,” where about 100 elephants are ridden by the most important monks of the community.
• In Ayutthaya there is the Aquatic Phansa Festival where the locals carry candles by boat to the local temple, to be used by monks during their three-month period of seclusion.

You can read all about the Phra Phutthabat event by clicking on the button below.

*All Khao Phansa 2020 Festivals are cancelled due to COVID19*

The Candle Festival Thailand is held in Ubon Ratchathani & is part of the Khao Phansa celebrations. It is the most famous candle festival in Thailand. Giant candles are elaborately carved out of beeswax in every imaginable shape and size. Each candle represents a local community, temple or organization. The candle designs are influenced by Hindu & Buddhist mythology. The candles are never burned but are melted down after the event.

Ubon Ratchathani Candle Festival Schedule

• On Asahna Bucha Day (July 5th) the candles are put upon floats and paraded through the city to Thung Si Mueang, the city park where they are displayed. Around the park there are cultural displays, a market, food stalls & live music.
• On Khao Phansa Day (July 6th) the main parade takes place accompanied by many marchers, dancers & musicians all dressed in traditional Thai costume. The parade starts sometime between 08.00-09.00 am in the morning at Wat Sri Ubon Rattanaram and continues around the town taking up to three hours for the complete parade to pass.

When is the Ubon Ratchathani Candle Festival 2020?

The Ubon Ratchathani Candle Festival 2020 will be held on the 5th & 6th of July.

*The Ubon Ratchathani Candle Festival 2020 is canceled due to COVID19*

The 140 year old Chonburi Buffalo Racing Festival or Wing Kwai (flying buffalo) Festival is a truly unique event being the only one in the world. Buffaloes are renowned for being slow but in reality they can run very fast! The festival is a way of giving thanks to the humble buffalo for it?s hard work in the farming community over the past year. The festival runs for a week but the racing takes place on October 1st. Other events include a Buffalo Fashion Show, a Buffalo Beauty Contest, a Buffalo Cart Parade, a Miss Farmer Beauty Contest, & Muay Thai Fights. There is also a market, food stalls and live music.

Chonburi Buffalo Racing Festival Schedule 2020

• 08.30 Buffalo Cart Parade at Wat Yai Intharam
• 10.00 Opening Ceremony
• 10.30 ? 17.00 Buffalo Racing

When is the Chonburi Buffalo Racing Festival 2020?

The Chonburi Buffalo Racing Festival will be held at the ceremonial fields in front of the Chonburi City Municipality Office on October 1st 2020.

The Yi Peng Festival also known as the Lantern Festival Chiang Mai or Thailand Lantern Festival is one of the most beautiful festivals in Thailand. Swarms of oblong shaped white lanterns are released into the sky. Inside the lanterns are large candles that illuminate the lanterns creating an amazing spectacle as the lanterns ascend into the night sky.

The lanterns are made from rice paper attached to a bamboo frame. When the candle inside is lit the hot air makes the lantern float and rise into the air. Traditionally wishes & prayers are written on the lanterns seeking good luck for the year ahead.

When is Yi Peng Festival 2020?

The Yi Peng Festival 2020 will be held on October 31st & November 1st in Chiang Mai. There are several commercial events where you are required to buy a ticket. These are not cheap at about 5000 to 6000 baht. However, you can watch for free and float your own lantern in the old city around Tha Phae Gate.

Yi Peng will be one of the most popular Thailand Festivals 2020 so book your travel & accommodation in advance as Chiang Mai is busier than usual during the Yi Peng Festival.

The Loy Krathong Festival is held once a year on the night of the full moon of the twelfth month of the Thai lunar calendar which occurs in late October or in November. This year it falls on October 30th. Loy Krathong is one of the most beautiful Thailand festivals, a ?must-see? spectacle that leaves a lasting impression.

On Loy Krathong day local people head for a local waterway to float their Krathong as a way of paying respect to the goddess of the water. Money in the form of a banknote or coin is placed on the Krathong for good luck. Strands of hair & fingernail clippings are also sometimes added as a symbol of abandoning negative thoughts. A wish is made as the Krathong is launched. It is believed that if the Krathong floats away it will take bad luck & misfortune with it.

When is Loy Krathong 2020?

The Loy Krathong Festival 2020 will be held on October 31st. If you want to watch the celebrations and float a Krathong there are designated areas in all Thai cities usually on riversides or in parks with a lake.

Loy Krathong in Bangkok 2020

The best places to celebrate Loy Krathong in Bangkok are Asiatique, IconSiam, Benjasiri Park, Benjakitti Park and Santi Prachan Park.?

Temple Fairs are held at temples all over Thailand at different times of the year. One of the most famous Thai temple fairs is the Golden Mount Temple Fair at Wat Saket in Bangkok. The temple grounds and the surrounding streets are turned into a giant fair ground with a ferris wheel, cultural shows, fairground games, live music,& a market and a massive selection of food stalls. On the opening day there is a candlelit parade to the top of the Golden Mountain. Once there, the golden chedi is wrapped in a bright red or orange cloth.

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When is the Golden Mountain Temple Fair 2020?

The Golden Mountain Temple Fair 2020 should be held from October 22nd until November 1st. Check back nearer the time for the exact details.

The Surin Elephant Round-Up is a cultural festival celebrating the Thai elephant and traditions associated with them. The Elephant Round-Up Festival is held in Surin in Northeastern Thailand.? Local people have long been associated with breeding and training elephants.

The festival features over 150 elephants with an elephant feast, an elephant parade, a sound & light show featuring a historical battle reenactments, an elephant football match between two elephant teams and an elephant vs soldiers tug of war.

When is the Surin Elephant Round-Up 2020?

The Surin Elephant Round-Up 2020 is provisionally scheduled for November 13th to 15th 2020. Check back for confirmation nearer the date.

The Monkey Festival is held annually in the city of Lopburi on the last Sunday of November. Lopburi is known as Monkey City due to it?s large population of Macaque monkeys. The festival is a way of thanking the monkeys for bringing tourists to the city, thus boosting local tourism & the city?s economic prosperity. The Monkey?s are invited to a party featuring a buffet of fresh fruit and vegetables at Prang Sam Yod.

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When is the Lopburi Monkey Festival 2020?

The Lopburi Monkey Festival 2020 will be held on 29th November at Prang Sam Yod.

The Bridge on the River Kwai was immortilized in the 1957 movie Bridge over the River Kwai and is the main tourist attraction in Kanchanaburi. The River Kwai Bridge Festival is an annual event held over 8 days every November/December. The highlight is a sound & light show that tells the story of the famous bridge & kanchanaburi during World War 2 climaxing in the famous bombing of the bridge. The festival is held in honor of the prisoners of war & Asian slave labor that built & died building the bridge and railway.

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The River Kwai Bridge Festival Sound & Light Show

The Sound & Light show is held over 8 days with one show per day at 19.00. There is an extra show on Saturdays at 20.30. Tickets are free and must be reserved at the box office next to the bridge from 16.00 daily. There are 1200 seats. One ticket per person (show ID card or Passport).

There will also be cultural performances, related exhibitions, live music, food and a Red Cross Fair with a market.

When is the River Kwai Bridge Festival 2020?

The River Kwai Bridge Festival 2020 will be held from Saturday November 28th until Monday December 7th.

Read more about Kanchanaburi

The Chiang Rai Flower Festival is held in the city of Chiang Rai in Northern Thailand every December to January. The festival features thousands of cold weather flower varieties. They grow in the cooler climate and bloom at this time of year. The flower highlights are tulips & lillies in a variety of colors. There are also lantern displays, cultural shows, live music, flower painting, a flower & plant market, and of course lots of delicious food.

When is the Chiang Rai Flower Festival 2020?

The Chiang Rai Flower Festival 2020 will be held from 25th December to 10th January 2021. The venue is Mae Kok Riverside Flower Park. Check back for more details near the date.