Thai New Year (Songkran)
10 Apr 2010 – 15 Apr 2010
This national festivities of the tradition Thai New Year captures the vision of tourists for both its cultural and fun attributes; the latter being enthusiastic bouts of water splashing between friends and relatives.
In Bangkok, the Songkran Grand Festivities will be held between 10 and 15 April around the Rattanakosin Island area, sometimes called “Old Bangkok.”
The major festivities, in the capital, focus on bathing rites of replicas of revered Buddha images originating from several provinces in the North, South, East and central territories, interspersed with traditional food and dessert-making demonstrations and cultural performances. The opening ceremony will take place, 10 April, at Phra Chetupon Wimol Manklaram or the Temple of the Reclining Buddha.
Pattaya celebrates Songkran a week later
Pattaya and its adjoining resorts in Chonburi province celebrate Songkran a week later than the rest of the country, which provides the festival’s hardcore followers a second round of amusement if they are still on holiday.
In Pattaya, the festival is officially called Wanlai and starts in Naklua a village community at the northern tip of the resort and continues in unabated enthusiasm, all week all over the resort, from the Naklua tip to the Jomtien toe.
Anyway, the more traditional elements of the festival are best witnessed in Naklua, 18 April, when residents turn out for a parade of Buddha images and an image bathing ceremony.
About 20 km north of Pattaya resort, denizens in the beachside of Bangsaen begin the celebrationses on 16 April, with a big contest to make more than 100 sand pagodas on the beach.
Monks take alms from inhabitants at a beachside venue. Once the events are over beach sport competitions begin with a riot of water splashing between spectators.
Nearby, Si Chang, a tiny island close to the coastal town of Si Racha, is the scene of a sand pagoda contest, where local children industriously build their dream palaces. Festivities contain local sports and a beauty contest.
Sattahip, a naval base town 25 km south of Pattaya, also celebrates Songkran, 15 to 17 April, in a comparable style with sand pagoda and beauty contests.
Further south, along the eastern seaboard, provinces such as Rayong, Chantaburi and Trat are all in sync with the rest of the country celebrating the festival 12 to 15 April.
Source : http://www.tourismthailand.org
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Visitors who call on to Bangkok, Thailand usually visit Damnoen Saduak floating market to see the old-style vendors touting their wares from small boats floating on the river. For a real Thai floating market experience though, keep away from Damnoen Saduak and it’s crowds of western tourists and, instead, head out of Bangkok to Amphawa Floating Market – a gigantic floating market an hour outside Thailand’s capital city. At Aphawa you’ll experience the ‘real deal’ and not a market plainly put on for tourists and their money.