Songkran Chiang Mai 2027: Dates, Tickets and How to Get There

Songkran Chiang Mai 2027 centres on Tuesday 13, Wednesday 14 and Thursday 15 April 2027, the three Songkran days the Bank of Thailand has published as 2027 holidays ¹. Those are the days of open water play on the Old City moat. The Chiang Mai Municipality has not yet published its programme for the next edition, so the start of the wider Lanna New Year calendar, known locally as Pee Mai Muang, is an expectation rather than an announced date.

For anyone searching for Songkran Chiang Mai 2026, the municipality ran Pee Mai Muang from 6 to 17 April 2026, a 12-day programme that coincided with the city's 730th anniversary ². The national holiday that year ran from Monday 13 to Wednesday 15 April 2026, and Wat Phra Singh opened the bathing of the Phra Buddha Sihing image to visitors from 1 April 2026 ⁴. Expect the same shape for the next edition: ceremonies and contests in the week before, water from about 11 or 12 April, and the peak from 13 to 15 April.

The date does not move because Songkran follows the solar calendar: the name refers to the sun passing from Pisces into Aries, and the three classic days are Maha Songkran Day on 13 April, Nao Day on 14 April and the New Year on 15 April ¹⁴. UNESCO inscribed Songkran in Thailand on its Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity on 6 December 2023 ¹⁴. That is all the national background this page needs.

Chiang Mai keeps its own Lanna sequence on top. The Lanna New Year once lasted six consecutive days, beginning with Wan Sangkan Laung and continuing with Wan Nao, Wan Phaya Wan, Wan Pak Pi, Wan Pak Duan and Wan Pak Wan; today it runs over 13 to 15 April in step with the rest of Thailand ⁸.

• Core water days: Tuesday 13 to Thursday 15 April 2027 ¹

• Wider city programme: expected to start in early April 2027, not yet announced

• Previous edition: 6 to 17 April 2026 ²

Tip: Land in Chiang Mai on Monday 12 April 2027 so that the morning of Songkran Day is free for the Phra Buddha Sihing procession.

Yes. The water play at Tha Phae Gate, the whole circuit of the Old City moat, the Phra Buddha Sihing procession and the temple rituals cost nothing, and the traditional ceremonies around Tha Phae Gate were listed as free in 2026 ¹². Nobody sells a seat on the procession route, and there is no gate to pass at the moat. You simply walk in and get wet.

Tickets only appear at the commercial events that have grown up around the public festival. These are the ones with published prices or entry terms from recent editions:

• Chiang Mai Songkran Fun Fest, Central Chiang Mai: 13 to 15 April 2026, tickets from 99 THB and free for children under 10 ¹²

• Singha Summer Club stage, Maya Lifestyle Mall: 11 to 15 April 2026, free entry ¹²

• Songkran at One Nimman: 11 to 15 April 2026, from 15:00 to 22:00 ¹¹

• Hotel pool parties: from 200 THB per person at one hotel to 3,400 THB for a Thai regional dinner with shows at another in 2023 ⁹

• Water war at Central Airport: 1,500 THB per person in 2023 ⁹

What you will actually spend money on is equipment. The Chang Khlan Road stalls around the Night Bazaar sell buckets, water guns and waterproof phone pouches, and ice vendors along the moat top up your water barrel for free when you buy their ice ⁵. A plastic bowl or a small bucket is the local choice; Time Out Chiang Mai advises keeping water guns to the tourist zones because people at local events do not appreciate over-splashing ⁵.

There is one rule on equipment to know before you shop. High-pressure water guns were banned nationwide for Songkran 2026, with fines of up to 4,000 baht ²⁰. Smearing powder on someone without consent carried a 5,000 baht fine in the same edition ²⁰.

Tip: Buy a cheap phone pouch on Chang Khlan Road, then test it in a sink before the moat. Time Out Chiang Mai notes that the 40 baht pouches are notorious for leaking ⁴.

Chiang Mai International Airport (CNX) sits about 4 km southwest of the city centre, and the drive takes about 10 minutes on a normal day via Route 4032 and Route 1141 ¹⁸. Most international visitors connect through Bangkok. During Songkran the distance stays the same, but the last kilometre around the moat can take longer than the flight from Bangkok.

The airport expected an average of 177 flights and about 22,104 passengers a day from 10 to 19 April 2026, including 39 extra Songkran flights ⁷. The same notice asked travellers to allow extra time from 12 to 15 April 2026 because of jams around the moat ⁷.

Your options from the terminal, with the fares listed by World Travel Guide:

• Airport taxi: flat 150 THB to any city destination, booked at the desk on the first floor ¹⁸

• Metered taxi: about 100 to 120 THB plus a 50 THB airport charge ¹⁸

• Red songthaew: 40 THB shared or 200 THB for the whole truck, outside the airport gates ¹⁸

• Tuk-tuk: about 100 to 150 THB, bargain first ¹⁸

Once you reach the Old City, stop driving. Time Out Chiang Mai recommends parking a motorbike on a side street, avoiding cars because traffic around the moat is gridlocked, and joining Tha Phae Road on foot from Nawarat Bridge on the Ping River ⁵. Nimmanhaemin Road has almost no parking during Songkran, so use a ride app there ⁵.

Getting back late is the harder part. Leave the moat on foot toward a side street before you book a car, and expect red songthaews to refuse the moat road while water play is on. Out-of-town splash spots such as Mae Kuang Udom Thara Dam in Doi Saket are harder still, since rides home are scarce on the holiday ⁵.

Tip: Anything in an open songthaew gets splashed from 13 to 15 April. Keep your passport and phone in a sealed bag inside your backpack, and keep luggage off the open rear bench.

The defining moment of Songkran in Chiang Mai is the morning the Phra Buddha Sihing image leaves Wihan Lai Kham at Wat Phra Singh Woramahawihan. In 2026 the image was invited out at 08:30 on 13 April and taken to the San Pa Khoi intersection, where the procession formed ³. The procession has run since 1990 along a route of about 4 km between Chiang Mai Railway Station and Wat Phra Singh, passing Tha Phae Gate, with other groups carrying further Buddha images behind it ⁸. Thairath reported that more than 50 other Buddha image processions were expected in the city on 13 April 2026 ¹⁶.

As the floats pass, people pour scented water onto the images. The water is prepared with turmeric, saproy leaves, flower pollen and perfume, and bathing the image is believed to bring blessings for the new year ³. After the procession, the Phra Buddha Sihing sits on an altar outside Wat Phra Singh for three days so that anyone can pour water over it ⁸.

The other rituals build around that day. These are the ones published in recent municipal programmes:

• Sand chedi contest, Tha Phae Gate: 12 April 2024, 13:00 to 17:00 ¹⁰

• Alms to monks, Tha Phae Gate: 13 April 2024, 07:00 to 08:00 ¹⁰

• Ladies' bicycle and umbrella parade, Tha Phae Gate: 13 April 2024, 09:30 to 12:00 ¹⁰

• Sand and mai kham sali procession: 14 April 2026 from 14:00, to Wat Chetawan, Wat Saen Fang, Wat Maha Wan and Wat Bupparam ³

• Chiang Mai Water Festival, Wat Chedi Luang: 11 to 13 April 2026 ¹³

Sand chedis are the detail most visitors walk past without understanding. Northern Thais carry sand into the temple to repay the grains taken out on their feet during the year, then shape it into small stupas decorated with tung flags ^{3 9}. The mai kham are decorated wooden props that symbolically hold up the sacred Bodhi tree ³. Rod Nam Dam Hua, the gentle pouring of water over the hands of elders, also belongs to these days ¹¹.

Tip: Time Out Chiang Mai notes that timings at Tha Phae Gate are rarely kept, so arrive early and wait rather than aiming for an exact minute ⁵.

Very hot. April is the hottest month of the year at Chiang Mai International Airport, with an average high of 36°C and an average low of 23°C, and the city's hot season runs from about 11 March to 7 May ¹⁵. That heat is the reason the water feels good. Time Out Chiang Mai puts the peak of the splash action on the moat around midday, exactly when the sun is strongest ⁵.

Rain is not the main risk. April averages about seven wet days, and the wetter season does not begin until about 25 April, so the Songkran days usually fall in the drier stretch ¹⁵. A short storm is possible, but you will be soaked either way.

Smoke from the northern burning season is the risk that catches visitors out. On the afternoon of 13 April 2026, PM2.5 around the moat and Tha Phae Gate reached 166 micrograms per cubic metre, ranking Chiang Mai fourth worst in the world at that moment ¹⁶. In the same edition, the Chiang Mai Tourism Industry Council said cancellations linked to PM2.5 helped push Songkran hotel bookings down ¹⁷.

How to time your day around heat, smoke and crowds:

• Morning: temples and the procession, before the heat builds

• Late morning to mid-afternoon: the moat at full strength, with sun cream and a hat

• Late afternoon: Tha Phae Gate performances, better for families and people on foot ⁵

• Evening: Nimmanhaemin Road, which Time Out Chiang Mai suggests saving for the end of the day ⁵

The moat water itself was tested before the last edition. On 10 April 2026 a sample opposite Wat Lok Molee read pH 7.55, within the Class 3 to 4 standard suitable for skin contact but not for drinking ⁶.

Tip: Pack a well-fitting N95 mask in a zip bag. On a high-PM2.5 morning, spend the hours at Wat Phra Singh and Wat Chedi Luang, then join the water when the air clears.

Book within walking distance of Tha Phae Gate if the procession and the temples are the reason you are coming, because cars cannot reach most of the Old City while the moat is in play ⁵. A room inside the moat, near Ratchadamnoen Road, puts Wat Phra Singh at one end of your street and Tha Phae Gate at the other. The trade-off is simple: you will be splashed from the moment you step out of the door.

The three bases that make sense for Songkran in Chiang Mai:

• Old City, inside the moat: traditional celebrations, temples, the procession route on foot ¹²

• Night Bazaar area, east of Tha Phae Gate: a balance of both, with the Chang Khlan Road stalls and hotel parties nearby ^{12 5}

• Nimmanhaemin Road: nightlife, mall stages and One Nimman's water playground for children, but a ride away from the procession ^{12 5}

Rooms usually fill early. The Chiang Mai Tourism Industry Council said hotel bookings for the long Songkran holiday stood at 50 to 60% on 8 April 2026, against 80 to 90% in a typical year ¹⁷. That dip came from smoke and regional instability, not a change in demand, so do not plan around a repeat ¹⁷. Théo Courant's Chiang Mai guide advises booking early in the Old City and Nimmanhaemin in particular ¹².

Location details that only matter during Songkran:

• A room on a side street (soi) east of Tha Phae Gate is close to the action but away from the water tunnel noise on Tha Phae Road ⁵

• A guesthouse facing the moat means arriving and leaving wet every time

• A hotel near Nawarat Bridge gives you the walk-in route that Time Out Chiang Mai recommends for Tha Phae Road ⁵

Tip: Ask your hotel whether its street closes to cars from 13 to 15 April. If it does, arrange for your taxi from Chiang Mai International Airport to drop you at the nearest open corner before you land.

Mobile data is the connection to rely on during Songkran in Chiang Mai, because public Wi-Fi does not reach the moat road and your phone will spend the day sealed in a pouch. Around 22,104 passengers a day were expected through Chiang Mai International Airport from 10 to 19 April 2026, and most of them end up on the same few streets around Tha Phae Gate ⁷.

What you use your phone for at this festival is specific:

• Ride apps: the only reliable way out of the moat jam, as songthaews avoid the water ⁵

• Live PM2.5 checks: the IQAir AirVisual reading was the one that tracked the smoke on 13 April 2026 ¹⁶

• Translation: the Chiang Mai Municipality posts programme changes in Thai on Facebook and at cmcity.go.th ²

• Group location: a shared pin at a named gate or corner bastion

• QR payments: many food stalls around Tha Phae Gate accept Thai QR codes, but carry cash too

Installing a Thailand eSIM before you fly means your phone connects when you land at Chiang Mai International Airport, and you can book a car before you reach the taxi desk.

Safety numbers to save before you get wet: police 191, Tourist Police 1155 with English support, ambulance 1669 and fire 199 ¹⁹. On the moat, the risks are a phone lost in the water, a slip on the stone edge and eyes stung by moat water; Time Out Chiang Mai advises protecting your eyes and mouth ⁵. In the last edition, municipal officers and firefighters were stationed around the moat from 12 April 2026 ⁶.

Tip: Turn on your phone's offline map for the Old City before 13 April, so the gate names and soi numbers still show when the signal drops in the crowd at Tha Phae Gate.