Songkran festival Thai Newyear

The Thai New Year is upon us and it’s hotter than hell, so hit the streets and cool down the traditional way with buckets of icy water

Starting on Monday 12/4 and running all the way through to next Sunday, Thailand is celebrating the Songkran festival. From Bangkok to Khon Kaen and Chiang Mai to Hat Yai, millions of us Thai, Mon and Chinese are taking to the streets, as well as to the temple, to celebrate Songkran and mark the lunar New Year.

Whether you fancy a gentle, traditional sprinkling or a bucketful of icy water over your head, the following venues have all you need for a good time.
As we wish the water will wash away our troubles this weekend, we offer our guide to everything from traditional treats to the wildest water parties,
So put politics and the recession on hold, and splash out!

BANGKOK
The City of Angels flows with every kind of fun as it rings in the Thai New Year, offering polite waterpouring ceremonies to wild street parties where no one stays dry in the wars of the wet.
Sanam Luang, the public space next to the Grand Palace, traditionally hosts the sober ceremonies and this year shouldn’t be any different, providing the park isn’t taken over by any antigovernment rallies over the holiday. The city’s biggest public space plays host to the Singha Buddha, giving visitors the chance to pour water over one of Bangkok’s most sacred Buddha images, which usually resides in the National Museum.
For a really wetandwild Songkran scene, walk east from Sanam Luang for 10 minutes to Khao San Road. Armed with pumpaction water canons and buckets of coloured powder, thousands of funlovers will be soaking everything that moves.
From Monday 12/4 (until there is nothing left to soak), Khao San Road and Santi Chaiprakan Park, in Bang Lamphu, are host to the International Songkran Festival with constant waterthrowing, lots of noise and people of all nationalities having fun.
Nine temples around Sanam Luang, among them Wat Pho, Wat Phra Kaew (the Temple of Emerald Buddha) and Wat Bowonniwet, are holding Songkran fairs from Tuesday to Thursday. There, the campaign to reclaim the traditional Songkran means visitors can expect to be asked politely before being lightly sprinkled with water.

CHIANG MAI
Chiang Mai is often considered the most exciting place to celebrate Songkran. The New Year begins in the temples with a gentle sprinkling of water and a light dusting on the cheeks with fragrant paste. Cultural shows and food festivals add a special colour and flavour to Lanna celebrations.
Things get wilder in the afternoon when throngs of revellers head out to the city moats. The festival culminates at night with lively dancing at Thapae Gate.

AYUTTHAYA
Ayutthaya, Siam’s old capital and a World Heritage Site, celebrates with a parade and great fanfare from Monday through Wednesday. The best places to hang out are Wiharn Phra Mongkhon Bophit, the ruins of the historical park, and in and around the island. A grand procession of Buddhas, Songkran beauty queens and elephants takes place on Tuesday on the city’s main road.

SAMUT PRAKAN
The old Mon neighbourhood of Phra Pradaeng keeps the best for last, celebrating Songkran in a threeday event that kicks off on Friday. The centrepiece is at Wat Ketchedtharam, a Mon temple in Phra Pradaeng district, with meritmaking and entertainment that runs from dawn till late at night. Expect traditional Mon games like sabaa, great food and folk arts.

CHON BURI
The celebrations take place at various venues this weekend and next, with Bang Saen (April 1617) and Pattaya (April 18) serving up the most fun from Sunday.
The Pattaya beach road will be closed to pave the way for the Buddha procession. Young people go gunning for fun armed with doublebarrel water cannons and buckets, ensuring the beach town gets totally soaked. Among the more courageous “roadside warriors” are the transvestites who turn up in supertight Tshirts clamouring for more water.
Bang Saen, on other hand, tends to be more familyoriented, with rituals, games and a sandcastle competition on the beach.

KHON KAEN
Isaan folk mark the Thai New Year with the Dok Khun Siang Khaen Festival, which kicked off on Thursday and ends this Thursday. Catch the procession of floral floats decorated with yellow dok khun (Golden Shower tree flowers) as it winds through the streets on Tuesday, and enjoy Isaan food, contests, cultural performances and folk music. For the best water fights, head to Si Chan Road.