Loy Krathong & Yi Peng Festival in 2026: Everything You Need to Know

1. What Date Is the Lantern Festival in Thailand in 2026?

Loy Krathong 2026 falls on Tuesday 24 November 2026, the night of the full moon in the 12th month of the Thai lunar calendar. In Chiang Mai, the Yi Peng lantern festival runs from 23 to 25 November 2026, so the two festivals are celebrated together in the north.

The festivals come later than usual this year because the Thai lunar year 2026 has an extra month, which moves the full moon of the 12th month from early November (5 November in 2025) to late November. In 2027, Loy Krathong returns to an earlier date: Saturday 13 November 2027.

2. Loy Krathong vs Yi Peng: What Is the Difference?

Loy Krathong is a nationwide festival in which people float krathongs, small decorated rafts, on the water. Yi Peng is a northern Thai (Lanna) festival of lamps and lanterns, including sky lanterns where they are allowed. Both fall on the same full moon, so in Chiang Mai they become one celebration.

3. Loy Krathong Festival: Floating Krathongs on Thailand's Rivers

3.1 What Is the Meaning of Loy Krathong Festival in Thailand?

Loy Krathong means "to float a krathong". People set a small raft of banana leaves, flowers, a candle and incense on the water to thank Phra Mae Khongkha, the goddess of water, to ask forgiveness for polluting the rivers during the year, and to let go of bad luck and grudges.

"Loy" means to float, and a krathong is a small lotus-shaped vessel. Many Thais link the festival to Nang Noppamas, a Sukhothai court lady said to have made the first krathong, although the historian Prince Damrong dated this story to the early Bangkok period.

>>>> Read more: Thailand's Top Cultural Festivals and Activities in November

3.2 How to Make a Traditional Krathong

 How to Make a Traditional Krathong (Click to see)

• Base: Cut a thick slice of banana trunk for the foundation.
• Wrap: Cover the base with banana leaves and secure them.
• Structure: Fold and pin small pieces of banana leaf into layered petals.
• Flowers: Decorate with lotus, rose, orchid, marigold or globe amaranth.
• Centre: Place three incense sticks and a candle in the middle.
• Extras: Add a small flag or a sparkler if you like.
• Offerings: Include a coin, or a strand of hair or a nail clipping as a symbol of letting go.
• Secure: Fix all parts with wooden pins or toothpicks.

Many people also tuck a small note with a wish into their krathong. As it drifts away, it symbolically carries off the bad parts of the past year.

3.3 What's the Best Time to Visit for Loy Krathong?

The best time is the evening of Tuesday 24 November 2026, after sunset, when candles are lit and most people float their krathongs. To see Yi Peng as well, be in Chiang Mai from 23 to 25 November. In Sukhothai, any night from 15 to 24 November works.

On Loy Krathong night, riverbanks, canals and park lakes fill with families and couples. Many events add fireworks, live music, Ramwong folk dancing and food stalls. In Sukhothai, a light and sound show is staged among the ruins at 7 pm each night, with an extra show at 8:30 pm on 24 November. Tickets for 2026 cost 500, 900 or 1,200 baht.

3.4 Where to Celebrate Loy Krathong in Thailand?

The best places to celebrate Loy Krathong are Chiang Mai, for krathongs and lanterns together; Sukhothai, for its historic setting; Bangkok, for easy-to-reach river celebrations; and Ayutthaya and Tak, for smaller traditional events. So far, only the Chiang Mai and Sukhothai programmes have been confirmed for 2026.

In Bangkok, the most popular spots are along the Chao Phraya River. Our map shows where to go: Bangkok (Click to see the destinations)

Top spots for entertainment in Bangkok:

4. Yi Peng Festival: Chiang Mai's Sky Lantern Festival

4.1 Why Is the Yi Peng Festival Celebrated?

Yi Peng is celebrated to make merit and honour the Buddha on the full moon of the second Lanna month; "Yi" means two and "Peng" means full moon in northern Thai. Lighting lamps and lanterns is an offering of light, and a lantern released into the sky is believed to carry misfortune away.

Temples, streets and houses are decorated with hanging paper lanterns and phang prathip, small clay cups filled with wax or oil and a cotton wick. The sky lanterns are called khom loi, "floating lanterns". They are made of thin saa (mulberry) paper, and the heat of a flame at the base lifts them into the air.

4.2 Where Is the Lantern Festival in Thailand in 2026?

The lantern festival takes place in Chiang Mai from 23 to 25 November 2026. In the city you will see lanterns, candles and krathongs, but not a mass sky lantern release. The famous scenes of thousands of lanterns rising together come from ticketed events outside the city, such as CAD Khomloy on 24 and 25 November.

The full 2026 programme has not been published yet. In 2025, the festival opened with tens of thousands of clay lamps around the Old City walls and the Three Kings Monument, and ended with a grand parade from Tha Phae Gate; in 2026 the parade is set for 25 November.

4.3 Can You Release Sky Lanterns in Chiang Mai?

Not in the city. For Yi Peng 2026, Chiang Mai Municipality has again called for a complete ban on sky lanterns in the city area. In 2025, lanterns were banned in six districts, including all of Mueang Chiang Mai, and allowed only in approved zones from 7 pm to 1 am.

Under the 2025 rules, offenders faced up to five years in prison, a fine of up to 200,000 baht, or both. Lanterns also endanger aircraft: in 2025, Chiang Mai International Airport ended departures by 7 pm on release nights, and by 31 October 161 flights had been cancelled or rescheduled. To release a lantern yourself, join a licensed event.

5. Where Can I Find Tickets for the Lantern Festival in 2026?

You only need a ticket for the mass sky lantern releases held outside Chiang Mai, as the city festival is free. The best-known one, the CAD Khomloy Sky Lantern Festival at The CAD Cultural Center Lanna in Mae On district, takes place on 24 and 25 November 2026. When we checked in late September 2026, all ticket tiers were listed as sold out on the FaceTicket platform.

Every CAD ticket includes two sky lanterns, a Lanna dinner with drinks and a return shuttle. Shuttles leave in the early afternoon from the Chiang Mai International Exhibition and Convention Centre (CMECC), or from Maya shopping centre for the top tiers, and the drive takes about 40 minutes. The lanterns go up together at about 8:15 pm. Children aged 8 and under enter free with a ticket-holding adult.

A smaller alternative is Yee Peng Lanna International near Mae Jo, about 18 km from the city, run as a Buddhist ceremony with prayers before the release. Check its 2026 date and price with your seller.

5.1 Is Yi Peng Festival Worth It?

Yes, if seeing thousands of lanterns rise at once matters to you and you accept the cost, the crowds and a long day: tickets start at about 4,900 baht and pick-up is in the early afternoon. If not, the free city festival still offers lamps, lanterns, krathongs and the parade.

6. Tips for Loy Krathong and Yi Peng 2026

7. FAQs

Is Loy Krathong a public holiday in Thailand?

No. Loy Krathong is celebrated across the country, but it is not an official public holiday, so it is a normal working day. Most celebrations take place in the evening.

Can you float a krathong in Bangkok?

Yes, at piers along the Chao Phraya and in public parks. In 2025, the city opened 33 parks until midnight and banned foam krathongs, sky lanterns, fireworks and alcohol inside them. The 2026 arrangements will be announced closer to the date.

Choose Chiang Mai to see both festivals together, Sukhothai for the historic setting, or Bangkok if the festival fits into a city break, and plan early: this year the full moon falls later than usual, on 24 November 2026.

 🗺️ Continue your trip around Thailand with us 🌏:

• Thailand's Best Floating Markets
• How Much Does It Cost to Travel to Thailand? Prices and Tips
• How To Say Hello In Thai?
• 16 Must-Have Thai Souvenirs (With Prices & Where to Buy)
• Thailand in April: What to Prepare for Songkran Festival

Sources: Chiang Mai Municipality, Fine Arts Department (Sukhothai Historical Park), Thailand.go.th, Chiang Mai University Lanna Information Center, Department of Internal Trade, Nation Thailand, Khaosod English, The Thaiger