Songkran

The three days

Songkran falls on 13, 14 and 15 April every year, on fixed solar dates. In 2027 that is Tuesday to Thursday, and all three are listed as national holidays. The days have names: 13 April is Maha Songkran, 14 April is Wan Nao and 15 April is Thai New Year's Day. UNESCO added the festival to its list of intangible cultural heritage on 6 December 2023, describing it as a time to wash away misfortune, pray for the coming year, reunite with family and honor ancestors and older adults.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand ties the festival to the sun moving into Aries, which traditionally marks the start of the year, in mid-April after the rice harvest. Pouring water symbolizes cleansing, reverence and good fortune, and people reunite with family and pay respect to older adults, ancestors and sacred Buddha images. The water fights are the part visitors know. Mornings are for temples, merit-making and rod nam dam hua, the ceremony of pouring scented water over the hands of elders. Khao chae, jasmine rice served in flower-scented water, is the signature food of the season, and mango sticky rice peaks in April.

Offices and banks close around 11 to 17 April, according to Visit Thailand Today, and the water fights in several cities run outside the three official days: Chiang Mai usually starts on 12 April and Pattaya's Wan Lai runs to 19 April.

Where to go

Chiang Mai's municipality ran a city festival from 6 to 17 April in 2026, with a procession of the revered Phra Buddha Sihing image, sand pagoda building and almsgiving, and the rod nam dam hua ceremony for elders. The water fights happen on the roads that follow the Old City moat, and Tha Phae Road became a pedestrian water zone with a 130-meter water tunnel open from 6pm to midnight on 13 to 15 April. Water-fight crowds were out on 12 April in 2026, the day before the official opening.

Bangkok's main water fights are on Silom Road and Khao San Road, both closed to traffic. Silom is the more mixed crowd; Khao San is where backpackers gather. Siam Square holds family-friendly events with stages and performances. The Maha Songkran World Water Festival at Benjakitti Park ran from 11 to 15 April in 2026. Crowds in Bangkok were reported at nearly 5 million over the festival, with Siam Square passing 1.5 million.

Pattaya extends Songkran to 19 April with Wan Lai, so it is the place to go if you miss the 13th to 15th. Visit Thailand Today suggests Phuket and Pattaya for beach and party trips, and Koh Samui for a more relaxed, family-friendly Songkran. For the road from the capital, see Bangkok to Pattaya.

Rules and fines

The rules are set each year and enforced. In 2026 the Bangkok authorities kept the festival alcohol-free and ended water play at 10pm. On Khao San Road water play was allowed only from 12pm to 10pm on 13 to 15 April, with screening points to stop powder and high-pressure water guns. Silom Road closed to traffic from Sala Daeng to Nararam on 12 April, with a parade at midday and water play from 1pm to 9pm daily, according to a Khaosod report.

The nationwide rules published in 2026 carried fines: up to 60,000 baht for splashing people who are not taking part, 5,000 baht for powder applied without consent, 4,000 baht for high-pressure water guns, which are banned, 5,000 baht for indecent clothing, 2,000 baht for riding without a helmet and up to 20,000 baht for drink-driving.

Roads and safety

Do not ride a motorbike during Songkran. Thai authorities counted 1,242 road accidents, 1,200 injured and 242 deaths over the seven dangerous days of 2026, from 10 to 16 April, and motorcycles were the vehicles most often involved. The leading causes reported early in the campaign were speeding at 41.77 percent and drunk driving at 27.43 percent. Bangkok recorded the most deaths of any province, 21.

On the street, do not spray monks, babies or elderly people who are not taking part, and do not throw ice water into faces at close range. Dark, quick-dry clothes work better than white, which goes see-through when wet. Keep your phone and wallet in a waterproof pouch.

Where to sleep

Visit Thailand Today says to book international flights four to six months ahead and hotels in Chiang Mai's Old City and in Bangkok's Silom area by January 2027. Sleeper trains open 90 days before the date.

Chiang Mai Old City puts you inside the moat, a short walk from the water fights and from the temples for the morning ceremonies. Silom is the base for Bangkok's main street party and the BTS and MRT. Banglamphu, around Khao San Road, is the other Bangkok choice and the more backpacker one. In Pattaya, where to stay in Pattaya covers four areas from Walking Street to Jomtien. See where to stay in Bangkok for five areas by train, boat and airport.

What to skip

Do not plan to cross a city by taxi on 13 April. Silom and Khao San are closed to traffic, so plan the day on foot, from a hotel inside the zone.

Do not assume the 13th to 15th is the whole festival. Chiang Mai starts on the 12th and Pattaya runs to the 19th, so a trip built on the national holiday dates misses the days at either end.