Yee Peng and Loy Krathong 2023 in Chiang Mai: A Spectacle of Lights
(Sunday, November 26th – Tuesday, November 28th)
Every year we get loads of questions about the famous Loy Krathong festival in Chiang Mai. People travel from all over the world to experience it and want to make sure they don't miss anything. When and where are the special events? Where should you go to get the best view of all the floating lanterns? In this blog, we will tell you everything you need to know about the Loy Krathong festivities in 2023. You may like to start watching the video below…
Celebrate Loy Krathong at Yee Peng Lanna Festival in Chiang Mai.
Loy Krathong and Yee Peng: Two festivals at the same time!
In Northern Thailand, and especially Chiang Mai, Loy Krathong is special because it is celebrated together with the Yee (Yi) Peng festival. To be clear: Loy Krathong is about floating lights on the water, Yee Peng is about floating lanterns into the sky. So in Chiang Mai, you can do both! Yee Peng is particular to the Lanna culture of Northern Thailand, and even though the Loy Krathong festival sees people release lanterns in the sky in many other places in Thailand, Chiang Mai offers the real deal. In the days leading up to the festival, the citizens of Chiang Mai decorate their homes, businesses, and temples with colorful lanterns.
What are Loy Krathong and Yee Peng?
As with most of the festivals in Thailand, Loy Krathong and Yee Peng are about giving thanks ('merit') and offering praise to Buddha. The festivals are held around the full moon of the 12th month of the Thai lunar calendar. It is believed that at this time the rivers are fullest and the moon is the brightest. Loy Krathong is to give thanks to the spirit of the river and the water it provides. This is done by floating a basket ('Loy Krathong') with a candle, flowers and sometimes money on the river.
Yee Peng's release of lanterns (Khom Loi) into the sky against the bright full moon, the best time of year to give merit to Buddha, symbolizes the leaving of darkness into a bright future. Making wishes to Buddha as you give merit this way is part of the tradition.
Special events: Where to go during Loy Krathong and Yee Peng?
The 2023 Loy Krathong and Yee Peng festivals will take place from Sunday, the 26th of November till Tuesday the 28th of November. Loy Krathong itself is on Monday the 27th of November. In the week before the festivals, you'll see lanterns being hung up all around the city, mainly at the Three Kings Monument and at Tha Pae Gate. Particularly the installation of many colorful lanterns at the Three Kings monument is worth checking out.
The Three Kings monument is also the place where we expect the festival to start on the 26th of November, at around 6:30 pm, with the first candle-lighting ceremony. Across the street, at the Lanna Folklore Museum, some of the Yee Peng festival's official events occur from around 7:00 pm. These include traditional (Lanna) dance performances and beauty contests. However, the official opening ceremony in 2023 will be at Tha Pae Gate on Monday the 27th of November. The Yee Peng Lantern Procession Contest will start there around 7:00 pm and will move from Tha Pae Road to the Night Bazaar. Chiang Mai Municipality Office will meanwhile host a Yee Peng Kids Contest. You can find the Municipality Office by going all the way down Tha Pae Road and turning left before the bridge. In this area, on either Monday or Tuesday, boat races will take place on the Ping river.
Yee Peng mass lantern release event on Monday the 27th of November
On Yee Peng, there are a few mass lantern release events. Our favorite one is Yeepeng Lanna Festival, 30 minutes south of Chiang Mai at Gassan Panorama golf course in Lamphun. It takes place on Monday the 27th of November and starts around 6:30 pm. The event includes traditional and modern Northern Thai (Lanna) foods and cultural events, entertainment by the Lanna Wisdom School, music as well as religious happenings. And, of course, the simultaneous release of thousands of lanterns! There will be 2000 tickets available for this event.
Tickets for the Yeepeng Lanna Festival cost 4500 Baht per person, including pick up and drop off from the meeting point in the city of Chiang Mai. The transportation will be by air-conditioned bus. Pick up meeting point will be at the Lotus Pang Suan Kaew Hotel at 4:00 pm and you will return here around 11:00 pm. Tickets include two lanterns, a Thai buffet dinner, souvenirs, transportation, and a bottle of water. Children 6 - 10 years of age are only charged a 2250 Baht entrance fee, and children younger than six can join the event for free. At PM Tours, we offer tickets to this event. Please scroll down to the bottom of the page to find the booking form.
Please check out the itinerary for the Yeepeng Lanna Festival 2023 below.
16:00 - 16:30 Pick up from the Lotus Pang Suan Kaew Hotel and transfer to the event venue at Gassan Golf Course in Lamphun. The last bus leaves at 5 pm.
17.00 - 17:30 Arrival at the festival terrain in Lamphun.
18.30-19.30 Enjoy releasing your floating offer, DIY craft, Lanna Culture Show, Music Show, Sword Fire Dance, and authentic Lanna food buffet. The buffet includes unlimited free food, non-alcoholic drinks, and Thai desserts.
19.30 Enter the ceremonial area to start the Yee Peng ritual.
20.30 All guests enter the ceremonial area. Monks will lead the chanting and meditation ceremony.
20.45 Simultaneous release of thousands of lanterns.
21.30 End of the ceremony and return to the city. Return to the city around 22:30.
The Place to be: Tha Pae Gate and the Ping River
On Monday the 27th and Tuesday the 28th of November, you can buy or decorate your own floating offer (Krathong Sai) at most of the larger temples in Chiang Mai, such as Wat Jed Lin, Suan Dok, Chiang Yuen, Bupparam, Nuntaram, Chai Sri Phoom, Ramphueng, Chai Mongkol, and Jed Yod. You can also buy a handcrafted Krathong at the riverside markets that spring up between the Nawarat and Ratanakosin bridges. These markets run all the way to Tha Pae Gate. You can also buy your flying lanterns here for as little as 50 Bath if you're lucky.
This is where Loy Krathong and Yee Peng really come together. On Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday evenings, crowds gather on and between the Nawarat and Ratanakosin bridges and launch thousands of banana-leaf Krathongs and hot air lanterns in the river and the sky. It is an amazing sight and truly bucket-list worthy. The atmosphere is great because everyone, Thai and foreigners, is there to enjoy the fantastic view. You'll see thousands of lanterns bobbing away in the air and on the water like a great swarm of migrating fireflies. Around 22:30-23:00, there are fireworks here, and you'll hear firecrackers going off all evening. The banks on both sides of the river offer plenty of places from where you get a good view of the spectacle.
Local events at temples and around the city continue on both Monday and Tuesday. On the evenings of Monday, the 27th, and Tuesday, the 28th of November (around 6:00 pm), the Grand Krathong Procession Contest starts from Tha Pae gate. It then moves over Tha Pae Road toward the river. The procession finishes at the Chiang Mai Municipality Office and features beautifully decorated floats, dancers, and bands.
Special tips: Wat Phan Tao
Be sure to visit Wat Phan Tao, a small temple two blocks south of the Three Kings Monument. Walking south on Prapokkloa Road, it is on your right side, next to the much bigger Wat Chedi Luang temple. In the days before Yee Peng, the monks decorate their little orchard with hundreds of colorful lanterns, and it creates a magical, fantastical sight. During Yee Peng and Loy Krathong, they hold sermons that increase the unique atmosphere of this place. Wat Chedi Luang is definitely also worth the visit while you are there, though it has an entrance fee.
As always, at temples in Thailand, make sure you are dressed properly and act respectfully. For religious festivals, it shows a decent form to dress in white. Many people don't know this, but when entering the temple, or really any building in Thailand that has one, you are supposed to step over the door sill. A door sill (doorstep) has spiritual significance because it belongs to the spirit guardian of the building. Respecting this boundary is believed to keep out evil spirits.
How to light your lantern and general safety
Lighting a hot air lantern is really a two-person job. After you buy your lantern and have arrived at the place where you want to release it, carefully unfold it. While one person holds it up, the other lights the flame source. Depending on the lantern, this might take a while, so we advise using a press-button lighter. Be patient after you light the flame; it will take a few minutes for the lantern to fill with hot air. Releasing it too early can be unsafe as the lantern may come down again. Seeing your lantern crash is not only disappointing but also bad luck; we counsel taking a few extra minutes. Just to make sure your lantern takes a good flight. Don't forget to make a wish when you release it!
When at crowded places such as on Nawarat Bridge, where many lanterns are being lit and released around you. Make sure you keep your awareness. Keep an eye on anyone releasing lanterns behind you that will float over you. Enjoy the moment but also be sensible about where you stand. On Nawarat Bridge, we advise you not to stand near the side. Sometimes, an elevated row of electric lights there catches lanterns, which subsequently catch fire and fall down.
