Vientiane Local Events
Events and Festivals in Vientiane are numerous and are a great activity to incorperate into your Vientiane vacation plans. But, if you plan your Vientiane holiday during one of these festivals, make sure to book your Vientiane hotel in advance. Please see below for some of them to get inspired for the best time to plan your Vientiane vacation:
Place: Bor Pen Nyang Bar, Mekong Riverside (19 May 2012)
Place: Vientiane (1 Oct 2012 - 31 Oct 2012)
The Boat Racing festival is held at the end of the monks' annual three-month fast during the rainy season. At dawn on the first day of the festival, offerings are made at the temples, while in the evening people release colourful floats made of flowers, candles and incense down the river to pay their respects to the river spirit and to bring them good tidings for the year to come.
Place: Vientiane (25 Nov 2012 - 1 Dec 2012)
That Luang Festival is held over a 3-day period during the full moon of the twelfth lunar month (normally early November). On the eve of the festival, the event starts with a colourful candlelight procession which starts at Wat Simuang, where locals meet and walk three times around the main hall of worship.
.
Place: Laos (1 Dec 2012 - 31 Dec 2012)
Celebrated in provinces across Northern Laos, the Hmong New Year celebrations features colourful displays of traditional costumes. Exact dates can vary village to village.
Place: Vientiane (14 Apr 2013 - 16 Apr 2013)
Lao New Year is celebrated at approximately the same time every year. On the first day of the celebrations, statues and images of Buddha are taken out of temples for a ritual cleansing. They are cleansed with scented water and placed on special alters in the temples for the duration of Pii Mai (pronounced Pee My).
