Thailand is famous for its exotic traditions and cultures and the country hosts a range of unique festivals and events throughout the year. In the Kanchanaburi Province, west of Bangkok, the Mon Floating Boat Festival will take place at the end of September. Trang Province in Southern Thailand, will be hosting its annual Moon Festival during the last week of the month.

Thailand’s annual Mon Floating Boat Festival will take place at Wang Wiwekaram Temple in Sangkhlaburi in the Kanchanaburi Province on September 23rd to 25th. The Mon people strongly believe that offering alms onto the bamboo boat and releasing it to the river will pay respect to the ‘angels of the river,’ forests and earth.

On the first day of the festival, villagers will begin their preparation for the next 3 days to put on final touches to the handmade bamboo boats, each taking over a month to build. Decorated with paper decors, weaved flags and banners, the boats add colors to the region’s natural landscape. On the second day of the festival, the village will perform religious rituals and alms offerings to Buddhist monks in the region. The boats are then loaded with local fruits including bananas, sugar canes, desserts, fresh flowers and candles.

During the last and final day of the festival, the Mon villagers will release their boats into the Samprasob River, as a way to cleanse and rid away bad luck from the year. Villagers will wear the Mon traditional clothing: men in sarongs and red and white plaid shirts, while women in red sarongs and white shirts. The villagers’ traditional clothing adds vibrancy and liveliness to the festival.

Trang Province’s Mid-Autumn Festival has been traditionally held in the town of Thung Yao by the Chinese in the region. This year, the festival will be held from September 22nd to 24th, in memory of the war era against the Mongolians. Trang is the largest trading port in Thailand, thus attracting a number of Chinese immigrants to run trading and logistics companies locally and choosing to live in the area permanently.

The Trang Moon Festival, which lasts for 3 days, includes a miniature Chinese food festival, cultural shows, vintage collection exhibition, traditional Chinese dessert making, tea tasting and decoration competition and every year the village will create an altar to thank the moonlit season.