Events & Festivals
JANUARY
FEBRUARY
Chinese New Year
The Chinese New Year (新年) is also known as the Spring Festival (春节). It is the most solemn festival of the year for every Chinese and has been celebrated in China for thousands of years. Many come to Luang Prabang to enjoy their holidays during this dates.
Wat Phou Festival
A religious annual festival in Champasack Province, South of Laos. It is held every year on the grounds of the pre-Angkorian remains of Wat Phou temple.
OCTOBER
Boun Lai Heua Fai
Awk Pansa
Celebrated at the end of the rainy season in Luang Prabang. A fabulous parade is held on the main street with big lighted chariots that have been crafter in each temple. Families then walk down to the river carrying beautifully offerings with candles and flowers which they light and set adrift on the mighty Mekong; a ceremony which is thought to give the person releasing the craft very good karma for the coming season. This is one of the most beautiful festivals, filled with magic and lights!
Luang Prabang
Half-Marathon
Charity race, run for children trough the beautiful Unesco World Heritage city of Luang Prabang. It is for Lao Friends Hospital for Lao Children; the hospital that provides free medical care and health education for all Lao children and treats over 20,000 children a year.
APRIL
"Boun Pi Mai”
Lao’s New Year
Beginning in mid-April and lasting for three days. Held during the hottest days of the year, before the on-set of the rainy season, it’s a time to clean one’s buddhist altars and spirit house. Over the years, this has evolved into a water festival. It’s one of the most fun festivals to attend! Get ready to get wet!
NOVEMBER
Tat Luang Festival
That Luang is held each year in Vientiane in two locations over three days: Wat Si Muang the first evening, and Pha That Luang (Big Stupa) the next two days. Considered the most important Theravada Buddhist festival in Laos — a time for topping up merit and paying respects to the Grand Stupa. There is also live music using traditional instruments as part of the folk heritage exhibit.
Lao Handicraft Festival
The Lao Handicraft Association holds its annual festival to showcase both traditional and modern handmade products, crafted by the association's members and artisans from around Laos. They include silk and cotton items, bamboo, rattan, silver jewellery, cultural products, pottery and mulberry planing, amongst others. The exhibition includes interesting activities as product demonstrations, beauty booth contest, handicraft seminars, daily fashion shows and a variety of performances by school children.
AUGUST
SEPTEMBER
Boat Racing Festival
In mid-term of the Buddhist Lent, at the time of the new moon, the biggest boat race takes place in the Nam Khan River. It is a very popular event and many people from the countryside take this opportunity to come in to town. The day before, a large street market will be held from 6 am to 12 am, located on the site of the old stadium, providing products from Thailand for a period of one week.
DECEMBER
Kin Chiang
Hmong New Year
Various ethnic minorities, most notably the Hmong, celebrate the past year’s harvest and the upcoming lunar new year. It is a week-long festival that features music, dancing and special foods. This is an excellent time to see traditional dresses, festive textiles, silver jewellery and traditional musical instruments.
Blue chair Film Festival
Founded in 2010, it is a non-profit film festival and cultural organization, which aims to develop the Southeast Asian film industry.
At the start of every December, the former royal capital of Laos transforms into a theater. Screens are rigged on garden lawns, within the walls of five-star hotels and at a central market. The whole town becomes the perfect setting for celebrating the art of cinema. All screenings are free and open to the public.