National Children’s Day
In Thailand, the second Saturday in January is designated as Wan Dek (Children’s Day). It’s a day when children receive gifts from family members and are generally treated with even more affection than normal. Children’s Day means that many tourist attractions see an influx of families who are able to take advantage of free or [...]
New Year Celebrations in Thailand
In towns and cities all over Thailand people have been welcoming in the New Year and wishing each other ‘Sawatdee Pii Mai’ (Happy New Year). Officially, Thailand uses the Buddhist calendar which is 543 years ahead of the Gregorian calendar used in the West. This means that the year 2010 is actually 2553 in the [...]
Do They Celebrate Christmas in Thailand?
Christmas isn’t an official public holiday in Thailand with only a small minority of the Thai population being Christian. However, T.I.T. (This Is Thailand) and so at this time of year hotel staff can be seen wearing Christmas hats whilst shopping centres and malls get decked out with decorations. Christmas trees appear amongst the palm [...]
2010 Songkran Holiday Period Extended
The Thai government has approved an extra day’s holiday for next year’s Songkran New Year Festival. Also known as Thailand’s Water Festival, Songkran is usually an official public holiday from April 13-15. Today’s news means that Friday April 16, 2010 will be an additional public holiday in Thailand.
The pre- and post-Songkran period is the busiest [...]
Constitution Day in Thailand
December 10 is a public holiday in Thailand to commemorate Constitution Day. The significance of the date goes back to 1932 and a time of great upheaval in Siam (the former name for Thailand) which resulted in the end of the absolute monarchy.
In the early 1930s, the Siamese economy was suffering from the effects of [...]
Thailand Celebrates Loy Krathong
Also known as the Festival of Light, Thailand celebrates Loy Krathong annually on the night of the full moon of the twelfth lunar month. The full moon occurs tonight, but festivities have been going on in many Thai provinces all weekend. Although it isn’t a public holiday, Loy Krathong is one of Thailand’s most anticipated [...]
Thailand Public and Bank Holidays, 2010
The following is the official government list of public and bank holidays in Thailand for 2010. Please note that where the actual date of the holiday falls on a weekend a Substitute Day has been granted on the Monday as a day’s holiday.
January
January 1 ( Friday) - New Year’s Day
March
March 1 (Monday) [...]
