It’s the most popular cultural festival in Luang Prabang – a time of year when locals let their hair down and the entire town get exciting. Pi Mai, otherwise known as Lao New Year, is a festival celebrated at the hottest time of the year – which is just as well, because most people remain drenched with water for the majority of the event. It’s known as the festival of water fights but there are lots of other cultural activities that run over the week including an elephant procession through the main street, a grand parade that involves thousands of locals wearing traditional and ornate costumes, a beauty pageant to crown ‘Miss Lao New Year’, sand stupa merit making by the Mekong River, as well as the carrying of the Prabang – the town’s most precious Buddha – from it’s home at the National Museum to Wat Mai where it is put on public display as part of a watering ceremony.

In Laos, Boun That Luang, or simply “That Luang” for short, is one of the most important of national public holidays. It is a Buddhist celebration centred around the That Luang, the name of the oldest and most highly acclaimed of all Buddhist temples (stupas) in laos.

Souang Heua in Luang Prabang (Boat Racing Festival)

Boat Racing Festival is held annually during the Buddhist Lent where the finest boat racing teams will gather together to race for the year’s title. Also, a Market Fun Fair would be held in the morning on the same day.

Date: 14 September 2023

Boun Ork Phansa (The end of buddhist lent)

Boun Ork Phansa is the last day of Buddhist Lent. It occurs on the 15th day of the 11th month of the lunar calendar. In the morning, donations and offering are made at temples around the country. In the evening candlelight processions are held around the temples while hundreds around of colorful floats decorated with flowers, incense and candles are set adrift down and rivers giving thanks to the river spirit (Lai Heua Fai). They are said to pay respect to the Buddha and to thank the mother of rivers for providing water for our lives as well as to ask for blessing and to float the bad luck for the past year away, enabling the good luck to flow in. Villagers who live far from rivers set up model boat made of banana stems and decorated with flowers and candlelight, while other simply light up some candles in front of their houses and do their prayer, wishing for good luck. This colorful ritual has been carried on by Lao people for thousands of years.

Date: 29 October 2023

Boun Lai Heua Fai in Luang Prabang (Light Boats Festival)

Boun Lai Heua Fai is a festival to ask the nagas (water spirits) to bring good luck. Each village makes and decorates a boat which are then paraded through town and at night launched onto the river and ceremonially set on fire as offerings to the spirits. Flowers are also scattered onto the river to prevent bad luck and thank the water spirits. The procession of boats, handcrafted from bamboo and banana trunks and colorfully decorated with illuminated candles and money, is very unique to Laos.

Date: 30 October 2023