After a 3-year hiatus due to the pandemic, the famous Songkran water festival in Thailand returns this year, lasting 3 days, from April 13-15, and is expected to be a big boost for the tourism industry in the land of golden temples.
Songkran 2023 will be held across Thailand. However, water battles will be held in specific areas of major cities such as Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Hat Yai, Pattaya and Phuket... In the capital Bangkok alone, 40 locations have been designated for public water fights.
Considered one of Thailand's most famous festivals, Songkran is famous for its giant water battles and colorful street parties. After three long years of restrictions due to the pandemic, this year's Songkran Festival attracts a large number of tourists from all over the world to attend.
Let's take a look back at Thailand's most famous and vibrant Songkran Festival this year:
Songkran Festival is held on April 13-15, marking the Thai New Year.
Songkran is a major tourist attraction in Thailand. In Bangkok alone, there are 40 designated locations for public water fights. On the tourist-friendly Khaosan Road, vendors sell food, clothes and water guns amid the scorching heat. Pictured is a family celebrating Songkran in Prachinburi province, east of Bangkok, on April 13.
Elephants and tourists splash water on each other during Songkran celebrations in Ayutthaya on April 11.
Police will be on hand to ensure the safety of festival-goers and to regulate traffic in the area. Police will also be checking to ensure that people on Khao San Road do not violate general rules such as carrying weapons, alcohol, wearing revealing clothes or being naked, being covered in flour or using high-pressure water guns.
Similar events were held across the country, including in Chiang Mai, where water fights continued despite high levels of air pollution that have plagued northern Thailand for months.
This is considered the first time Songkran is held at "full capacity" since 2019, when in previous years Thai authorities banned or restricted the festival to prevent the Covid-19 epidemic.
Many hope Songkran celebrations, which take place during Thailand's hottest month, will boost tourism as it recovers from Covid-19.
Thai people and tourists on April 13 brought colorful water guns and took to the streets to celebrate the Songkran water festival, which takes place over three days this year.
Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha unexpectedly participated in a water gun fight on the street during the famous water festival in Bangkok on April 14.
Khao San Road will be closed from noon to 8 p.m. from April 13-15 for the water festival. Officials have allowed businesses to play music and set aside areas for the event, but are not allowed to set up stages along the way. Pictured is a scene of people splashing water in Chiang Mai.
Songkran is also celebrated in Thailand's neighboring countries such as Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos. The festival usually falls during the hottest time of the year, when temperatures can reach 40 degrees Celsius.
Last year, "water fights" were officially banned on Khao San Road, a popular party area for foreign tourists, due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand estimates this year's Songkran festival will generate more than 18 billion baht ($530 million) in revenue and attract more than 300,000 international visitors during the holiday week.
Considered one of Thailand's most famous festivals, Songkran is famous for its giant water battles and colorful street parties.
Songkran has its origins in the ancient Indian festival of Makar Sankriti, which recognizes the path of the sun. The word Songkran comes from a Sanskrit phrase meaning “passing” or “beginning anew.” Thais celebrate Songkran as a time of transition from the old year to the new.
For Buddhists, this auspicious movement of the celestial bodies marks an important day. In the past, Thai New Year was celebrated on the first day of the first lunar month. Today, the festival is celebrated in the fifth month. The reason for this change is related to the departure from the previous customs of the Thai people in southern China, whose culture was based on wet rice cultivation and Buddhism, which incorporated many astrological beliefs.
