10 of the Best Festivals to See in Thailand 2026/2027

Thailand never fails to impress travelers with its vibrant festivals. Below are 10 of the best festivals in Thailand that you won't want to miss, from the popular Sky Lantern Festival to exciting water fights of Songkran. Experience more during your Thailand tour beyond its blissful beaches, fabulous food, beautiful temples, amazing elephants, and charming floating markets.

Songkran (The Water Festival)

Also called the Water Festival, Songkran is one of the largest and wettest Thailand festivals, celebrated to mark the beginning of the Buddhist New Year. It's about purification and having a fresh start.

The Thai people celebrate Songkran with parades, dancing, folk performances, and above all, water fights. People sprinkle water on each other to wash away bad thoughts and actions and wish good luck for the coming year. Even Buddha statues will be bathed in water with jasmine and rose petals.

Over time, the water festival has turned into a "war": people store water in whatever vessels they have, like buckets, water balloons, and squirt guns to splash other people - with good intentions, of course. As April is the hottest month in Thailand, this is also a great way to cool off and have fun.

Water fight during Songkran

When is the Songkran Festival: Celebrated annually from April 13 to 15. (Officially, the festival is three days long, but many people celebrate it for a much longer time, like six days, especially in popular destinations such as Chiang Mai and Phuket.)

Where to celebrate the Songkran Festival:

• Head to Thapae Gate (Chiang Mai), Khao San Road & Silom Road (Bangkok), and Patong Beach (Phuket) for the wildest Songkran water fight celebrations.
• Go Isaan for a relatively quieter and more traditional experience with temple activities.

Tips:

• You will get totally wet unless you stay in your room during the entire festival. Only the King, pregnant women, and monks are exempt from being splashed.
• Dress respectfully. Remember that it is still a religious festival. Don't take off shirts and avoid wearing a bikini unless you are at the beach.
• Keep your phone, camera, and everything digital waterproof, and leave all valuables at your hotel.
• Get a bucket or buy a water cannon if you want to take part in the water fights.

Loy Krathong (Festival of Lights)

Loy Krathong is the second biggest festival in Thailand, only after Songkran. With hundreds of floating water lanterns: banana leaf boats loaded with flowers, incense, and candles going down the rivers, lakes, and canals, it is certainly one of the most spectacular.

Loy means "to float," and Krathong is a special Thai floating raft. The Thais send their decorated boats down the river to pay homage to the Water Goddess as well as to thank her at the end of the rainy season, or just simply to say goodbye to past misfortune and make wishes for the year ahead.

When celebrating the Loy Krathong: In 2026, this local festival will fall on November 25th, the evening of the full moon in the 12th month of the Thai lunar calendar.

Where to join the Thailand Festival of Lights: Like Songkran, Loy Krathong is celebrated nationwide. You can go anywhere near water or along the Mekong River. Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Sukhothai, and Phuket are some of the best places to enjoy this colorful festival.

Tips:

• Some of the best ways to experience Loy Krathong in Bangkok include roaming a public park, booking a riverside hotel, taking a river cruise, and visiting a riverside mall.
• If you want to enjoy the water lantern festival as the locals do, consider buying a Krathong that can be found at the street vendors, or your hotel may offer you one.

Yi Peng Festival

Yi Peng is a festival of light somewhat similar to Loy Krathong, but with sky lanterns instead. During the festival, thousands of paper lanterns called "khom loi" are released into the night sky. The spectacle is truly an incredible sight to behold, and it's a photographer's dream to capture such moments. Apart from sky lantern release, the festival also includes paper lantern displays, religious events, parades, fireworks, music performances, and food.

Yi Peng differs from Loy Krathong in that lanterns are launched into the air instead of being released in the water, and Yi Peng is mainly celebrated in northern Thailand, whereas Loy Krathong is celebrated all over the country. The biggest celebration of the Yi Peng lantern festival is held in Chiang Mai, where Loy Krathong coincides with the Yi Peng Festival.

A monk launching a lantern during Yi Peng

When is the Yi Peng Lantern Festival: November 24 to 25, 2026

Where to go for the Yi Peng celebrations: Chiang Mai is the best city to see this fantastic sky lantern festival, with thousands of lanterns flying into the night sky, candles lining the small lanes, and special parades. Major celebrations take place in the Three Kings Monument, Thapae Gate, the Old Town moat area, and the Ping River.

Tips:

• Reserve your hotel and flights well ahead of time, as the price rises very quickly when the festival approaches.
• If you visit temples, keep your shoulders, knees, and chest covered.
• Don't forget to make a wish before you launch a floating lantern to the sky.

Magha Puja

Observed by Buddhists in Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Sri Lanka, Magha Puja is one of the most important Buddhist ceremonies and festivals. This festival celebrates the gathering of Buddha and 1,250 of the first disciples whom he enlightened. "Magha" refers to the third lunar month in Thailand, and "Puja" means "to honor". Thus, "Magha Puja" stands for honoring the third lunar month.

On Magha Puja Day, the Thai Buddhists prepare and offer food to monks in the morning, listen to Buddhist teachings in the afternoon, and bring flowers and candles to the temple at night. They also strictly observe the five Buddhist precepts, including abstaining from killing living things, stealing, sexual misconduct, lying, and alcoholic drinks. This is why most bars in Thailand are closed on this day.

When is the Magha Puja: In the Gregorian calendar, this usually falls in February. In 2027, it will be celebrated on February 21.

Where to go: Visit Buddhist temples such as Wat Pho in Bangkok if you want to observe the local celebrations.

Visakha Bucha (Buddha's Birthday)

The most important Buddhist festival in Thailand commemorates the three most important events in Buddha's life: his birth, his enlightenment, and his death (attainment of nirvana) all on the same day, known as Vesak Full Moon Day.

On Visakha Bucha, Buddhists visit local temples, make offerings, and participate in rituals such as listening to Buddha's teachings and meditating. In major temples, there are candlelight processions performed, making it a truly peaceful and serene place.

When the Visakha Bucha falls: It mostly falls in May or June. In 2027, Visakha Bucha will be observed on May 20th.

Where to visit: Major temples in Bangkok, Chiang Mai, and elsewhere are the epicenter of the event.

Royal Plowing Ceremony

An ancient royal tradition dating back over seven hundred years, the Royal Plowing Ceremony marks the beginning of the rice-growing season. With half of the Thai population relying on farming for a living, it's no wonder that the ceremony is an important event for the people and the government. The ceremony is also a time to honor outstanding farmers for their agricultural innovations. Thus, it is also called Farmer's Day.

During the plowing ceremony, two sacred oxen covered in red and gold are used to plow the field in front of the Grand Palace. They circle the field nine times (because nine is an auspicious number in Thailand). The oxen are then offered seven foodstuffs, including rice, corn, green beans, sesame, grass, water, and local rice wine. What they choose will predict what will be bountiful for the coming season.

When to celebrate the Royal Ploughing Ceremony: Typically falls in mid-April or May, and is celebrated on May 19 in 2027.

Where to go: Sanam Luang, a large open field and public square near Wat Pha Kaew and the Grand Palace in Bangkok.

Bun Bang Fai Rocket Festival

Bun Bang Fai Rocket Festival is observed by the local farming communities in northeast Thailand, especially in the province of Yasothorn. Giant, homemade rockets that have taken months to build (can be over 10 meters long) are launched into the sky to wish for plentiful rains as the planting season draws near.

Participants enjoy local music and rice wine during the festival. Before being launched, rockets are paraded around the city. The winner is the one whose rocket takes off most dramatically and soars the highest. Those who fail to launch their rockets are thrown into pools of mud as punishment.

When is the Rocket Festival: Usually in mid-May, it falls on May 14 to 16 in 2027.

Where to go: Phaya Thaen Public Park, Yasothon

Phuket Vegetarian Festival

Rooted in Chinese culture, it is a festival about spiritual purification. But not the kind of vegetarian festival you may think of, the Phuket Vegetarian Festival is perhaps Thailand's strangest and most extreme festival.

It is also called the Nine Emperor Gods Festival or the Kin Jay Festival. Some devotees demonstrate their devotion by practicing self-mutilation, such as walking on burning coals, piercing cheeks with swords, and climbing blade ladders. Miraculously, most of them heal up without medical care.

During the festival, devotees cannot consume meat, so you will find many vegetarian food stalls marked with yellow flags. The food is mostly soybean-based and made to look like meat products such as pork and chicken, and has the same texture.

When is the Vegetarian Festival in Phuket: It is typically celebrated on the first day of the ninth lunar month, and falls on Oct 19 to 28 in 2026.

Where to see the celebrations: Some of Phuket's major shrines include Jui Tui, Bang Niew, Phut Jaw, Cherng Talay, and Kathu. Festivities move between different shrines.

Tip: The mutilation can be rather shocking for some people, so if you plan to see it, be mentally prepared.

Lopburi Monkey Banquet

The Lopburi Monkey Banquet is held in the provincial capital of Lopburi, just 150 kilometers north of Bangkok, to honor macaque monkeys that are believed to bring local people good luck.

The festival takes various locations among the ruins of the Pra Prang Sam Yot Temple. Monkeys who gather around the temple are the guests of honor and are invited to indulge in a big feast with towers of watermelon, durian, lettuce, pineapple, and other fruits and vegetables.

When is the Lopburi Monkey Banquet Festival: Usually held on the last Sunday of November. In 2026, it falls on November 29.

Where to go: Lopburi's Pra Prang Sam Yot Temple, about a three-hour drive from Bangkok.

Tip: Mind your belongings, as monkeys can get unruly and steal your purse or your food.

Chinese New Year

You don't have to go to China for the Chinese New Year celebration or Spring Festival. Though the Chinese New Year is not a public holiday in Thailand, Thai Chinese normally have at least a day off.

It is a time to enjoy time with family and friends and pay respect to their ancestors. Parents give red envelopes containing money to their unmarried children; they visit extended families and relatives and wish them a happy Chinese New Year; houses of Chinese shop owners are decorated with red paper lanterns, Chinese calligraphy banners, and posters. In Chinatowns across Thailand, the Chinese hold dragon parades, firecrackers, and acrobatic dances.

When is Chinese New Year in Thailand: In 2027, it will be celebrated from February 6 to 20.

Where to go for the celebrations: To see the biggest celebrations, go to Yaowaraj, Bangkok's Chinatown. In Phuket, visit Thalang Road, Dibuk Road, and Phang Nga Road to enjoy the festivities. If you are in Chiang Mai then, head to Warorot Market for a more sober celebration.

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