SEPTEMBER 27 - OCTOBER 5, 2009
ILLUMINATED BOAT PROCESSION
The Mekong River, Nakhon Phanom

As night falls, majestic ‘fire boats’, elaborately-adorned with flowers, incense sticks, candles and lanterns and each bearing an assortment of ritual offerings, are set alight and floated down the Mekong River.

Against the darkness of the moonlit night, the sight of flickering light from candles and lanterns on magnificent ‘fire boats’ drifting downstream on the Mekong River, is both mesmerising and awe-inspiring. It is this enchanting spectacle that has given the water-borne procession its very name — ‘Lai Reua Fai', which literally means to set afloat a ‘fire boat’.

The illuminated boat procession is celebrated in I-San, the northeastern region of Thailand on the 15^th day of the waxing moon to the first day of the waning moon in the 11^th lunar month of the Buddhist calendar, usually a month earlier than the corresponding month in the conventional calendar. This dazzling event marks the end of the Buddhist Lent or ‘Ok pansa’ and is accompanied by a colourful street procession and cultural performances which add to the highlights of the event which is held annually.

Contact information:
Tourism Authority of Thailand, Nakhon Phanom Office
Tel: +66 (0) 4251 3490-1
Fax: +66 (0) 4251 3492
E-mail: tatphnom@tat.or.th

SEPTEMBER 30 - OCTOBER 4, 2009
THE SAKHON NAKHON WAX CASTLE PROCESSION
& ROYAL TROPHY LONG-BOAT RACES
At Wat Phra That Choeng Chum Temple, Sakon Nakhon

To mark the end of Buddhist Lent or ‘Ok Pansa’, communities in Northeastern Thailand or ‘I-San’ stage an annual celebration consisting of a grand procession of meticulously-carved wax castles, long-boat races and festive celebrations. On the final day of the festival, which falls on the end of the Buddhist Lent, local residents make a trip to the temples to make merit.

This ancient folk tradition that has been passed down from generation to generation. Over the centuries, the tradition has evolved. Originally, ornate wax trees carved out of poles of beeswax were presented to temples along with other merit-making ritual offerings. Contemporary offerings consist of elaborate designs and sophisticated shapes and forms. Beeswax is molded into miniature Buddhist temples and shrines or wax castles.

Contact information:
Tourism Authority of Thailand, Nakhon Phanom Office
Tel: 0 4251 3490-1
Fax: 0 4251 3492
E-mail: tatphnom@tat.or.th

NOVEMBER 2009
LOI KRATHONG – FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS
In Bangkok: October 31 - November 2, 2009
Nationwide: October 28 - November 4, 2009

As the full moon of the twelfth lunar month (usually in mid-November) lights up the night sky, throughout the Thai kingdom, hundreds of thousands of ornately-decorated krathong or traditional banana leaf floats are set adrift in rivers and waterways in a spell-binding ritual called "Loi Krathong" - the 'festival of lights". This is one of the Kingdom's oldest and best-preserved traditions.

The Loi Krathong tradition we know of today has evolved from the royal rituals of the early Rattanakosin period in which several types of lanterns were set afloat in the Chao Phraya River and its waterways.

Loi Krathong Sai on the Ping River
Night of A Thousand Floating Lanterns
In Tak province, the banana-leaf floats are replaced by coconut shells which are threaded together and launched simultaneously so they appear as long chains of hundreds of glittering lights on the Ping River, hence the origin of its name, "Loi Krathong Sai".

Yi-Peng Festival in Northern Thailand
In the Northern Thai provinces that were once part of the ancient Lanna Thai kingdom, the Yi-peng Northern Lantern Festival is still being celebrated. Tubular lanterns, resembling hot air balloons, are lit and released into the night sky as an offering to the Lord Buddha. As hundreds of illuminated lanterns drift into infinity, this conjures the same sense of wistful closure as the krathong float downstream.

HIGHLIGHTS AND EVENT VENUES
Loi Krathong celebrations in Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Sukhothai, Tak, Ayutthaya, Samut Songkhram and Hat Yai
Please click for more details

Contact information:
TAT Call Centre: 1672
Or TAT Event Planning Division
Tel: +66 (0) 250 5500 Ext 3495-3499