Thai Festivals in Phuket
Thais are famous for their love of fun and enjoyment and Phuket festivals are frequent and fun. The biggest holiday of the Thai year is Songkran, which occurs during the hot season (April 12th to 15th). Traditionally celebrated as the start of the Thai New Year and as a celebration of the water goddess, Songkran has evolved into an all-out water fight with pick up trucks full of Thais and foreigners alike unleashing buckets of water on anyone within range. Patong and Phuket City are the best places to get in on the fun of Songkran and streets are crowded with fun-loving people armed with day-glo water guns drenching each other in a riot of fun. A unique Phuket twist to Songkran is the Turtle Release Fair during which hundreds of bay turtles are released into the sea at several locations around the island’s coast.
The other major festival of the Thai calendar is known as Loy Kratong and takes place in late November. This ‘festival of light’ is a much quieter and picturesque celebration than Songkran. Small floats (known as ‘Kratongs’) are crafted from banana leaves, flowers and candles and sent off in the water to wash away the sins of the year. Fireworks are set off to scare away the evil spirits as well and Khoms – rice paper hot air balloons which are let off into the night sky, and they form a pretty sight as they glow in the distance.
The Phuket festival best known around the world is the Phuket Vegetarian Festival, which occurs on the first day of the ninth month of the lunar calendar (usually around late September or early October). This festival originated when a troupe of Chinese performers visiting Phuket fell ill. They gave up meat for seven days and performed a number of rituals to purify themselves and appease the gods. During the Vegetarian Festival the Buddhist population dons white clothing and abstains from meat, alcohol and sex. Street markets spring up serving a variety of vegetarian delicacies unique to the festival. Selected participants enter Chinese shrines and meditate until they enter an ecstatic trance and claim that they are possessed by spirits. While in this trance they perform amazing and fairly gruesome acts of self-mutilation. Spectacles include bladed ladder climbing, fire walking and the must-be-seen-to-believed processions. Processions take place in the morning all over the island and involve entranced celebrants piercing their faces with everything from spikes to knives to lawn furniture as well as self-flagellation with axes and swords. Images of Chinese gods are carried through the streets and evil spirits are scared away with firecrackers by the thousands.
Traveller tale: Phuket Vegetarian Festival
One of the most bizarre displays of human piercing in the world is guaranteed to spoil your appetite!... more
The Chao Ley (sea gypsy) Boat Floating Festival is similar to Loy Kratong. It occurs twice a year, during the sixth and eleventh lunar months of the year. The sea gypsy villages at Rawai and Sapam hold their ceremonies on the 13th; Koh Sirey celebrates on the 14th; and Laem La (east of the bridge on Phuket’s northern tip) on the 15th. The festival is marked by night time ceremonies during which exquisitely crafted small boats are set adrift to cleanse the people of the sins of the year.
The Thao Thep Kasattri and Thao Sisunthon Fair occurs in mid-March to commemorate the repelling of Burmese invaders by the two celebrated heroines of Phuket. Performances, markets and other events are held throughout the island, particularly near the Heroines’ Monument.
Every May in Phuket sees the annual Phuket Seafood Festival take place, which is designed to promote the delicious varieties of seafood found around the island. The festival features a parade, cultural performances and, of course, plenty of delectable seafood.
Tourist season in Phuket officially opens on the first of November and there are several events around the island to welcome visitors. The biggest is the Patong Carnival, which is a lively and colourful affair held in the main tourist area of Phuket. The festival changes slightly every year but always includes concerts, parades, games and food stalls, centred on Bangla Road. Other areas of the island also hold concerts and smaller carnivals of their own.
The King’s Cup Regatta (4th to 11th of December) is a prestigious international race and draws boats and their crews from all over the world to compete for royal prizes.
The King’s and Queen’s Birthdays (5th of December and 12th of August, respectively) are also mothers' and fathers' day in Thailand and Thais demonstrate their deep reverence for their monarchs by displaying huge portraits of the royal family. Try to get a good vantage point to watch the fireworks set off for the celebration.
Chinese New Year (late January or early February) is widely celebrated in Phuket, which has a large Chinese influence. ‘Lion dances’ and parades are held in Phuket City to the accompaniment of thousands of firecrackers.
