Story: Light up the Night: Celebrating Loi Krathong in Northern Thailand

The festival of Loi Krathong is celebrated across Thailand each fall, when the country’s waterways are transformed into rivers of twinkling lights. During this time, Thais carefully construct small floats, or krathongs, made of banana leaves, flowers, incense and candles. They then light and float them down the river both to pay respect to the Goddess of the Water, and in hopes of luck for the coming year.

Around Chang Mai, in northern Thailand, the local incarnation of the festival, called Yi Peng, takes the celebrations to the skies as well. Rice paper lanterns, called khom loi, are launched into the air taking the year’s worries with them. The result is a sight to behold- the entire night sky is lit up with hundreds of lanterns rising above the town. On the streets below, parades, beauty pageants and traditional dance performances keep the crowds entertained. Venturing close to the river, teenagers shooting fireworks and bottle rockets may keep you ducking for cover. But if the cacophony of sound and sparks gets too overwhelming, just look up and be lulled by the glow of the graceful lanterns as they struggle to gain height, and then drift off into the dark reaches of the sky.

One of the best parts of this festival for the traveler is how easy it is to participate. Simply purchase a khom loi or krathong from a street vendor, and then set it aloft or adrift alongside everyone else. If you have troubles, there are monks at the many Wats (temples) around town ready to help you light and launch your khom loi. And when my krathong was ensnared in some river reeds, a group of teenage boys quickly jumped to my aid and set it free. In one particularly moving moment, I was invited to join an entire family as they launched their khom loi together from the courtyard of their local Wat. This is not a festival to watch from the sidelines, but one that takes you under its wing and surrounds you in the warmth of the local spirit.

Loi Krathong is celebrated across Thailand each year on the full moon of the 12th lunar month, usually November. The celebrations last for several days, culminating on the full moon night. Yi Peng celebrations are unique to the north of Thailand, but there are other large Loi Krathong celebrations in Sukhothai, Ayuthaya, and around the country. There have been environmental concerns in recent years from the use of Styrofoam or other synthetic materials to build krathongs, so be sure to purchase only those made of natural materials.