Skip to content
ThailandHQ

Religious

Khao Phansaวันเข้าพรรษา

The start of the three-month rains retreat — and the day Ubon Ratchathani parades giant carved beeswax candles

Next
19 July 2027
19 July 2027
Where
Nationwide, Ubon Ratchathani, Saraburi
Public holiday
Yes
Alcohol sales
Banned

In short

Khao Phansa opens vassa, the period during which monks remain within one monastery for study and meditation rather than travelling. Lay Buddhists mark it by donating candles and robes, and many Thais give up alcohol for the full three months — a widely observed abstinence campaign known informally as the Buddhist Lent. It is a public holiday and a statutory dry day.

The interior of the ubosot at Wat Ratchabophit in Bangkok, looking down the nave to the Buddha image at the far end beneath an unusual Gothic-style vaulted ceiling covered in gilded tracery, lit by hanging lamps.
Chainwit. / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0)

Go if

  • Ubon Ratchathani, where carved beeswax floats gather at Thung Si Mueang park and the main parade runs on the morning of Khao Phansa itself
  • Saraburi's Tak Bat Dok Mai, in which monks walk over a carpet of flowers offered by the crowd
  • Anyone who wants a reason to stop drinking for three months — you will have a lot of company

Be aware

  • The second dry day in a row. Shops, restaurants and standalone bars cannot sell alcohol
  • Ubon Ratchathani accommodation books out for the candle festival; the 2026 edition ran 28–30 July with lighting installations from the 25th
  • Banks and government offices closed

Dates

The first day of the waning moon of the eighth lunar month — always the day after Asalha Bucha. The retreat runs three lunar months and ends at Ork Phansa.

  • 30 July 2026Thursday. Second consecutive dry day after Asalha Bucha.
  • 19 July 2027Monday.

Sources

What’s on

Calendar →

← The full Thailand calendar