Loy Krathong: What This Festival Is Actually Like

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The first time I watched a krathong drift away on the river outside my house in Chiang Mai, I understood immediately why people fly across the world for this festival. It is one of those experiences that photos genuinely do not do justice, and I still tell people it is worth planning an entire trip around.

What Loy Krathong Actually Is

Loy Krathong is a festival where people float small decorated baskets, called krathong, on rivers, canals, and lakes across Thailand as a way of paying respect to the water spirits and letting go of bad luck from the past year. The krathong themselves are usually made from banana leaves, flowers, incense, and a candle, and traditionally biodegradable, though you will see some cheaper foam versions too, which I would avoid buying if you want the more authentic experience.

Being honest with you: this happens all over Thailand, not just in one city, so where you experience it changes the feel completely. Bangkok’s version is riverside and crowded. Chiang Mai’s is something else entirely.

Loy Krathong vs Yi Peng: The Confusion I Clear Up Constantly

This is the single most common mix-up I hear from people planning a trip around this time of year. Loy Krathong is the nationwide river festival. Yi Peng is a separate, Northern Thai tradition, specific to Chiang Mai and the surrounding region, where people release sky lanterns, those glowing paper lanterns that float upward and fill the sky. The two festivals happen at the same time of year and overlap in Chiang Mai, which is exactly why the city gets so much attention, you get both experiences in the same trip.

If the sky lantern photos are what drew you here, that is Yi Peng, and Chiang Mai is where you need to be. If you just want the river festival, any city works.

When It Falls

Loy Krathong follows the Thai lunar calendar, so the date shifts every year, it is not fixed like a Western holiday. It typically falls in November, on the night of the full moon of the twelfth lunar month. Because the date moves, always check the confirmed date for the specific year you are traveling rather than assuming it matches last year, I have seen people miss it by planning around the wrong week.

Where to Experience It

Chiang Mai

The combination of Loy Krathong and Yi Peng here is genuinely the reason people build entire trips around this festival. Floating krathong on the river alongside the mass lantern releases is an experience I still find hard to describe properly. Book accommodation well in advance, hotels in the Old City fill up fast for these dates.

Bangkok

A more urban, riverside experience along the Chao Phraya River, with events at several piers and a genuinely festive atmosphere, though obviously with heavier crowds and less of the intimate feel Chiang Mai has.

Sukhothai

The festival’s spiritual home, since Loy Krathong is believed to have originated here. It is a quieter, more traditional version among the historic ruins, worth considering if you want the cultural roots without the biggest crowds.

What I Would Skip

Skip buying foam krathong if you see them, they are cheaper but not biodegradable, and it goes against the spirit of the whole tradition. Also, if lantern photos are your main goal, do not assume you can just show up in Chiang Mai without a plan, the official lantern release events sell out, so book ahead.