Loy Krathong in Phuket

What is Loy Krathong in Phuket?

Krathong is a Thai term which refers to a piece of banana trunk decorated with flowers, banana leaves, candle and incense sticks. The word Loy means to float in the Thai language. When put together,  those two terms simply mean floating banana trunk festival. Modern krathongs are mostly made out of bread or Styrofoam. But Styrofoam krathongs are sometimes not allowed as they pollute the water and they are difficult to decompose. Bread Krathongs are more environmentally friendly as they are biodegradable and in most cases eaten by fish.

Why do Thai people want to float a krathong?

There are many stories regarding how the festival originated. One of the versions is that Thai people have long been closely involved with rivers for ages as Thailand is an agriculture based country. This means rivers are like their own blood veins. And to show respect to the river, basically the goddess of the river called Pra Mae Khongkha, Thai people decided to make a Krathong to worship and ask for forgiveness. The Thais now also see it as a time to wave goodbye to misfortune, wash away sins of the past year, and make wishes for the coming year.

When is Loy Krathong celebrated?

Loy Krathong takes place on the evening of the full moon of the 12th month in the traditional Thai lunar calendar. In the western calendar, this usually falls in November. The exact date is announced a month before the festival.

Loy Krathong in Phuket to be celebrated on November 9 in 2022.

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