Each November, the Krabi Boek Fa Andaman Festival heralds the beginning of the peak tourist season in Thailand’s spectacular southern province. Running for three days in early November, the event is a lively showcase of the unique local culture, which has roots in traditional Indian heritage. The area’s diverse traditions are celebrated through food, crafts and performances, offering visitors a golden opportunity to take a deep dive into authentic southern Thai culture.

Let the fun begin!

The name of the festival translates to “Opening the Andaman Sea” and marks the start of Thailand’s busiest tourist season from November through to February. Parades, cultural and musical performances are some of the event’s highlights for visitors. There are also open-air markets throughout Krabi Town, where plenty of locally produced knick-knacks and souvenirs are available. The action-packed programme also features water sports, sea kayak competitions, thrilling longtail boat races and intriguing cultural competitions.

Getting to Krabi Town

From Bangkok, Krabi is just over an hour by plane. If you’re travelling from the island of Phuket, take a minibus or local bus from the bus terminal in Phuket Town. Buses leave every day and you can find all the information you need, plus timetables via the island’s hotels and travel agents.

Loy Krathong is the Thai tradition which has been annually celebrated throughout Thailand since the Sukhothai period. For this year, in 2021, the date of the celebration should be on the 11th of November.

How people celebrate Loy Krathong

On full moon nights, Thai people normally float Krathong, small lotus-shaped floating receptacles, down rivers or canals. The main purposes of the Loy Krathong festival is to express gratitude and ask for forgiveness from Phra Mae Khongkha (the goddess of water) for throwing rubbish and polluting the water. Many also believe that it is a way to drift away misfortune and bad luck from the past.

Best places in Bangkok to celebrate Loy Krathong

In Bangkok, there are a lot of superb locations for the Loy Krathong festival. The first one is ICONSIAM, the shopping mall on the banks of the Chao Phraya River. The easiest way to get there is to take the Skytrain to Taksin Bridge station and take the Shuttle Boat to ICONSIAM. Another stunning riverside spot is Asiatique the Riverfront featuring a lot of food stalls, pop-up shops and magnificent stage shows. Similar to ICONSIAM, you can just take the Skytrain to Taksin Bridge station and hop on one of Asiatique´s free river ferry shuttles.

Besides these riverfront spots, another popular venue is Lumpini Park, a large verdant green area in the centre of Bangkok. Surrounded by lots of edifices, the colourful lights from those buildings create splendid city views for posting Instagram stories. You can get to Lumpini Park by taking MRT to Silom Station or BTS to Sala Daeng station.

If you’re in Phuket around mid-April, you will most likely notice big bikes and choppers rumbling around the island, which can only mean one thing – the island is revving up to Phuket Bike Week. Every year over Songkran, bikers from all around the region gather in Phuket to participate in Asia’s largest motorcycle event, which attracts over 10,000 enthusiasts on wheels, including those arriving on riding processions from nearby provinces. The event itself straddles the Thai New Year of Songkran, with activities happening at Patong Beach leading up to the Thai New Year, and restarting at Phuket Boat Lagoon right after.

Phuket Bike Week Festival Highlights

As the name suggests, motorcycles are the main highlight here. Bikes can be admired in all their glory at special exhibitions or at the bike parade. The festival also features a custom bike contest, and vendors selling everything from bike accessories to complementary apparel to help bikers look the part. A full line-up of entertainment provides many opportunities for family fun, including a beach party with live musical performances and food stalls selling a mix of creative snacks and traditional fare. There are also organised riding convoys around the island, an activity which is open to visitors.

How to get to Phuket

As Thailand’s premier island destination, Phuket is well connected to domestic and a number of regional destinations. During the high season, several seasonal charters also arrive at its international airport from Europe. From Bangkok, Phuket is just over an hour’s flight away on numerous airlines.