Phuket Festival

Songkran Festival in Phuket is the traditional Thai New Year, which is celebrated on April 13th.

Locals gather at temples to celebrate, sprinkling water on the Buddha images and on each others hand as an act of wishing good luck.

But it is a great excuse for a massive water fight, everyone has buckets of water or water pistols.

So if you are in Phuket on April 13th don't carry your camera or phone or anything that you don't want to get wet..

This is a great time to visit and join in on the fun at this Phuket Festival.

Songkran Festival Video

The Sea Turtle releasing festival is a continuation to the Songkran festival, in an attempt to conserve the number of diminishing sea turtle population that lays its eggs at Nai Yang and Mai Khao Beaches.

This Phuket festival includes releasing of the turtles into the sea at beaches in the north of Phuket, such as Bang Tao Beach, Nai Yang Beach and Mai Khao Beach.

Sea Turtle Releasing Video

The Phuket Vegetarian Festival is one of the most popular and successful annual celebration in Thailand.

The 9 day event doesn't have a fixed date on the calendar, but is always held from the 1st to the 9th of the 9th Chinese lunar month, which is around late September to mid October.

The origin of this Phuket Festival is unclear, although it is thought that the festival was brought to Phuket in the early nineteenth century by a travelling Chinese Opera Group that all fell ill with malaria while performing on the Island.

To cure themselves they all went on a strict vegetarian diet and abstained from alcohol and sex for 9 days and 9 nights, in order to purify their bodies and minds.

To the astonishment of the locals they all recovered and from then on the festival has been held every year.

Ceremonies are centred around the six Chinese temples that are scattered across the Island.

The main temple is the Jui Tui Shrine located in Phuket Town.

At each of these temples there are daily events, like climbing ladders that have sharp blades as rungs or running across a bed of hot coals.

At each of the temples you can buy the most amazing vegetarian food.

Daily street processions are held, where you can watch men and women puncture their checks with various items such as knives and skewers.

This Phuket festival can be quiet gruesome and is definitely not for the feint hearted, like myself.

WARNING: This video contains very graphic images

The Loy Krathong festival falls on a different day each year, it falls on the full moon of the 12th lunar month, which is normally sometime in November.

The Festival is celebrated all over Thailand.

In Phuket the festivities are anywhere that you find water..... and that is just about anywhere in Phuket.

The word Loy means to float and Kratong means leaf cup or bowl.

The locals flock to any beach or river to float their Loy Kratong that have been beautifully decorated with flowers, candles and incense sticks in the light of the full moon. 

It is believed that the float will carry your bad luck away and give you a better start to the forthcoming year.

A must to see if you are in Phuket as this festival is absolutely beautiful.

Loy Krathong on Patong Beach