Lantern Festival in Chiang Mai, Thailand

This year’s Yi Peng Lantern Festival was held Nov. 13-15 in Chiang Mai, Thailand. The festival celebrated the full moon, and beautifully represented moving away from darkness into a brighter future.

There are many lantern festivals in Thailand year-round, but this festival is unique to northern Thailand and has deeply historic roots. While traditionally monks were the only ones to release lanterns, anyone can do so (including tourists). Novice monks now release large lanterns with firecrackers attached early in the morning as way to kick things off.

When the lanterns light up the night sky, the appearance is truly magical. The lanterns are usually handmade, and while some can have intricate decorations, most are plain. The lanterns are mostly launched near the Ping River. For the best views, pick a location in view of the bridge, but not quite as close. Some recommend visiting the Wat Pan Tao or Wat Chendi Luang temples for incredible views.

The reason the lanterns are launched into the sky is to pay tribute to Buddha and release bad memories. The lanterns are released with a wish for the future and represent movement toward better times and brighter futures. This is a unique event not to be missed, and will have shutterbugs snapping gorgeous photos of the lanterns in juxtaposition to the bright and beautiful full moon.