Festivals in Bangkok
Bangkok, the city that never sleeps, is packed with many activities for both visitors and residents. There are a variety of festivals throughout the year, ensuring that you will never be bored or having nothing to do in this city of Angel. Blending together Thai’s rich culture and Bangkok’s metropolitan values, Bangkok welcomes you to the festivals from which you can find traditional events with colourful history of Thailand, religious beliefs and traditional ideas and some other festivals that are just pure fun, promoting good mental heath and reducing day-to-day, big city stress.
January
New Year Festival
Even though Thai New Year is not the first of January, Thais still celebrate on this day. The celebration includes a lot of fireworks, parties and present-giving. The 1st of January is also considered a national holiday and if this day falls on Saturday or Sunday, there is always a compensation day off on Monday.
Chinese New Year Festival
Because many of the people in Bangkok are from Chinese origins, Chinese New Year is a very important event in Bangkok. During this time, people will pay respect to their forefathers who have passed away. It is also considered a gathering of the family where the elders give money to the children and they all eat together. There are many parades and contests, as well as Chinese food festival, around Yaowarat, the Chinatown area of Bangkok.
February
Bangkok International Film Festival
Bangkok International Film Festival takes place annually to promote alternative award-winning international and local films, some of which cannot be seen on major screens. Organised by Royal Thai Government and the Tourism Authority of Thailand, the Bangkok International Film Festival also features workshops and symposiums, special tributes, the Bangkok Film Market (BFM) and the spectacular special events. If you are in Bangkok during this time of the year, this festival is not to be missed.
Makabucha Day
This celebration originally came from the day when 1,250 disciples from the Lord Buddha gathered to listen for the Dharma speech after Buddha's enlightenment. Buddhists go to the temple to make merit. In the evening, they perform candlelit processions by walking three times around the temple.
March
Kite Flying Festival
Thailand’s summer starts around March and that’s when Bangkok residents go out and play kites at the famous Sanam Luang, the main ground opposite the Grand Palace. This kite-flying activity has been Thai’s popular sport since old times. There is also a kite fighting contest at Sanam Luang every year.
April
Songkran Festival
Better known for its mayhem of fun water fights, Songkran serves a traditional Thai New Year. On this day, there are many activities going on including parades of dancers, music troupes and boat races. Thai people visit their parents and grandparents in order to wish them good health and receive blessings in return. They also go to the temple to make merits and wish for good luck and prosperity. In Bangkok, Songkran events are held around Grand Palace and Sanam Luang, near Khaosan Road. But for wild water fighting, head to Kaosan Road, the hub of fun itself. The splashing lasts for three days over the lunar full moon.
May
Ploughing Ceremony
The King is the host of this event where the King has to plough the ground in order to mark the beginning of the planting season. This is an ancient Brahmanic ceremony and it has been passed on for so many eras. The King also gives blessings to the farmers so that they will have the best year of their harvest.
Visaka Bucha Day
The Buddhist religious day, Visaka Bucha Day, is the holiest day of all Buddhist important days as it commemorates the birth, enlightenment and the death of the Buddha. Buddhists usually go to the temple in the evening to join the candlelit procession.
June
International Festival of Dance and Music (Part 1)
Organised every year in Bangkok, the festival features an array of world-class performances from all over the world. There are a variety of dance and musical shows which have gained themselves international fame worldwide.
July
Asalahabucha Day
This celebration takes place one day before the Buddhist Lent day. This day is to commemorate the first sermon of Buddha to his five first disciples. The significance of this day is that it deals with Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. There are also candlelit processions and fun fairs at the temple.
Buddhist Lent Day
For three months after this day, the Buddhist monks will not leave the temple and stay in the temple to make their prayers. This day falls on a rainy season, so it is believed that the monks should make the rain retreat so that they will not step on the plants grown by villagers. Buddhists usually go to the temple to make merits and give food to the monks as they are not allowed to go visit the residents. During this period, there is a fun festival where people decorate big candles and enter them in the candle competition. All candles are to be taken to the temple so that the monks can use them at night.
August
The Grand Celebration of Her Majesty’s the Queen (12 August)
The 12th of August is Queen Sirikit’s birthday and serves as the National Mother’s Day and a national holiday. There are many celebrations going on in Bangkok, most of which are to show love and respect to the Queen of Thailand. In the evening, Bangkok residents gather at Sanam Luang with the lit-candles in their hands in order to wish the Queen a happy birthday. During the month, many streets are beautifully decorated with the Queen’s pictures and an array of charming flowerbeds. Thai people also give jasmine, a symbol of Mother’s Day, to their mothers and take their mothers out on a special meal.
September
Food Festival in Chinatown
During this month, Chinatown on Yaowarat Road is turned into a main hub for a great selection of Chinese and Thai food. This event also includes cultural and musical shows.
International Festival of Dance and Music (Part 2)
Organised every year in Bangkok, the festival features an array of world-class performances from all over the world. There are a variety of dance and musical shows which have gained themselves international fame worldwide.
October
The Moon Cake Festival
Those of Chinese origins in Bangkok celebrate this event by giving a ‘moon cake’, a special kind of sweet cake prepared in the shape of the moon and filled with sesame seeds, ground lotus seeds and eggs, to each other. This ceremony is to pay respect to the Goddess of the Moon.
End of Buddhist Lent Day
The three months rain retreat is now over for the monks. The monks are allowed to go out of temples. Robes offering ceremonies or ‘tot kra-tin’ take place everywhere in Thailand where Thai people bring clothes and food to the monks. The ceremony usually lasts for one month.
November
Krathong Floating (Loi Kratong)
This festival is observed nationwide and has been going on since Sukothai period. People gather at the waterside to float (or ‘loi’) their ‘krathong’, a lotus-shaped vessel elaborately decorated with flowers and candles, in order to pay respect the Goddess of Water for giving them water to use each day. Fun fairs, concerts, contests and many other fun games and activities are organised during this festival.
Golden Mount Fair
Buddhists in Bangkok go to the Golden Mount in the compound of Saket Temple during this week of the festival (from the 11th day of the waxing moon of the 12th lunar month to the 3rd of the waning moon of the same month) to worship the Buddha’s relics. There you can find some interesting folk plays, local food and a small amusement park.
Thai Beer Festival
When the weather gets cooler, Thai people always come out and sit at one of the beer gardens mushrooming everywhere around Bangkok. The most famous one is in front of Central World Plaza where you can find a variety of food and snack to eat with major brews like Singha, Leo and Chang. There are also international brands of beer including Heineken. The stages are set up for the singers and dancers to croon their songs and show their moves.
December
Military Parade
Annually, the Royal Guards go on a parade in unity before the King on the Ground of King Rama V’s Equestrain Statue to show their respect and loyalty to the three most important institutions of Thailand, the King, the nation and the religion of Buddhism.
The Grand Celebration of His Majesty’s the King (5 December)
The 5th of December, King Bhumipol’s birthday, serves as the National Father’s Day and a national holiday. There is a grand celebration at Sanam Luang where important people of the country and Thai citizens gather to pay respect to the King and wish the King a happy birthday with lit-candles in their hands while singing songs for the King. Throughout December, you can see almost every street decorated with Thai flags, the King’s pictures and many beautiful flowers. On this day, Thai people also give canna flower, the symbol of Father’s Day, to their fathers and take their fathers out on a special meal.
Christmas
Even though Thai people do not celebrate Christmas, there are usually many parties going on. Christmas fairs are held at some markets and you can find a variety of Christmas cards and Christmas trees at every the mall around Bangkok. Some restaurants even celebrate Christmas by giving discounts or special promotions. Gigantic Christmas trees can be seen in front of first-class hotels with a few shops selling candies and ice-creams only during Christmas time.
