Extended Songkran Festival Set to Boost Tourism Revenue

[webfact]

BANGKOK (NNT) - Thailand is gearing up for an extended three-week Songkran festival this year, expected to significantly boost the country's tourism sector, with projected revenues reaching into the tens of billions of baht.

 

Thanks to UNESCO's recognition of Songkran as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, festivities are planned across major destinations such as Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Phuket, and Pattaya from April 1 to 21. 

 

Optimism is high for an increase in visitor numbers to Chiang Mai, spurred by an aggressive promotional campaign. The city is preparing for a longer festival period than usual, with hopes for hotel booking rates to hit 65-70% between April 12 and 16 and an average occupancy rate of 55-60% for the entire month.

 

Pattaya is also looking forward to its unique "Wan Lai" festival, starting April 19. The festival will merge cultural traditions with modern entertainment, with promises of water fights, DJ performances, and live bands.

 

To ensure the safety of tourists, extensive security measures are in place, and hotel bookings have significantly increased, particularly from Chinese visitors.

 

Khao San road in Bangkok is expecting around 100,000 visitors for the Songkran festivities from April 13 to 15, permitting events to run until 9 pm. Responsible government units have been instructed to continue promoting the extended festival to draw in international tourists and to adhere to transparent communication regarding the schedule of events.

 

In Phuket, the “Songkran Water Music Festival on the Beach 2024” and other cultural events are expected to attract scores of tourists, with hotel bookings already nearing 80% capacity. The island province expects to welcome over 264,350 visitors, generating approximately 7.04 billion baht in revenue.

 

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) estimates that the upcoming Songkran festival will generate a nationwide revenue of 52.5 billion baht, a substantial increase from the previous year's figures.

 

The central administration is focused on improving information dissemination to ensure visitors receive accurate details about this festival's nationwide celebrations and to enhance the overall experience for all participants.

 

by Krajangwit Johjit

 

Source: NNT 2024-04-08

 

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[quake]

Hope they all enjoy the water throwing.

I will be visiting pattaya after the 21st. 

 

 

 

[ikke1959]

3 weeks Songkran.. It could be me, but I noticed nothing in the past weeks of any Songkran activity... Everything is as previous years with Songkran on 13-15 April...

[Gsxrnz]

The real winners are the street vendors selling factory "seconds" water guns at 500 Baht a piece. Every gun I ever bought develops prostrate cancer within 3 minutes and can only muster a weak dribble thereafter.

[Geoffggi]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

Thailand is gearing up for an extended three-week Songkran festival this year, expected to significantly boost the country's tourism sector, with projected revenues reaching into the tens of billions of baht.

How do you mean we are running out of water ................LOL

[Gottfrid]

It´s called creating an extended drought problem all over Thailand.

[KhunLA]

11 minutes ago, Gottfrid said:

It´s called creating an extended drought problem all over Thailand.

Same every year.   They need to move the 'Water Festival', to June or July, some month in rainy season that doesn't have a major holiday.

 

Start celebrating Songkran, the traditional way, before it turned into an embarrassing drunken water festival.

[Gottfrid]

18 minutes ago, KhunLA said:

Same every year.   They need to move the 'Water Festival', to June or July, some month in rainy season that doesn't have a major holiday.

 

Start celebrating Songkran, the traditional way, before it turned into an embarrassing drunken water festival.

Yeah, real Songkran, where they sprinkle water on mother and father as well as elderly persons to show respect and honor. That is a lovely tradition, but the thing it turned into is just a madhouse for irresponsible power drinkers.

[connda]

2 hours ago, webfact said:

Thailand is gearing up for an extended three-week Songkran festival this year, expected to significantly boost the country's tourism sector, with projected revenues reaching into the tens of billions of baht.

Even the tourists will get bored within a week.  This will be a wash-out, but those tourist who do book a extended trip with the intent of coming to Northern Thailand for a 3 week Songkran?  After sucking "killer air" for three weeks and enjoying the wonders of a brown-hazed sky where there are usually mountains - they'll never come back this time of year, and they'll tell all their friends as well. 

Be careful what you wish for.

[Tarteso]

 I told you, 3 weeks !!!

crazy autocrats.

[hotchilli]

5 hours ago, webfact said:

Thailand is gearing up for an extended three-week Songkran festival this year, expected to significantly boost the country's tourism sector, with projected revenues reaching into the tens of billions of baht.

Expected, projected.... blah blah blah.

[smedly]

5 hours ago, webfact said:

Thailand is gearing up for an extended three-week Songkran festival this year, expected to significantly boost the country's tourism sector, with projected revenues reaching into the tens of billions of baht.

utter nonsense, what tourists, do they mean Thais who cannot afford to party for a week, this just sounds like desperation 

[hotchilli]

3 hours ago, Gottfrid said:

Yeah, real Songkran, where they sprinkle water on mother and father as well as elderly persons to show respect and honor. That is a lovely tradition, but the thing it turned into is just a madhouse for irresponsible power drinkers.

When the countries broke tradition goes out of the window...

[Confuscious]

Wonder how many people will die or be disabled for the rest of their life in the extra Songkhran days.
Luckely, these extra days will bring more tourists money for the care of these people.
What a <deleted> up country .....

[Bobthegimp]

This afternoon I hosed down my first geezer of the season.

 

I carry a geezer gun on my scooter and when I see a particularly dour looking gent he gets it in the loins so that it looks like he's incontinent.

 

You've got to soak them before they leave town. 

[Bobthegimp]

6 minutes ago, Confuscious said:

Wonder how many people will die or be disabled for the rest of their life in the extra Songkhran days.
Luckely, these extra days will bring more tourists money for the care of these people.
What a <deleted> up country .....

 

I saw 2 accidents on my way to breakfast today.

 

A lady on Thappraya (sp?) Road was conscious and being loaded into an ambulance. 

 

The second was a young lady on 3rd Road and Lengkee. I don't think she was alive. No helmet and it looked like she was sound asleep on the pavement with a very peaceful expression on her face. Two Thai men were holding a bamboo sun shade up to shield her from the rays and a cop was just getting on his motorbike.  It looked like a collision between a big bike and a scooter.  At home I would have rendered assistance, but here I have no idea what the protocols are and how to instruct ABVs to assist. 

[quake]

10 hours ago, Gottfrid said:

Yeah, real Songkran, where they sprinkle water on mother and father as well as elderly persons to show respect and honor. That is a lovely tradition, but the thing it turned into is just a madhouse for irresponsible power drinkers.

 

You must be a newbie.

It's been a mad house in pattaya for 27 years that I know of.

and I'm sure,  a lot longer. 

 

[khaowong1]

10 hours ago, connda said:

Even the tourists will get bored within a week.  This will be a wash-out, but those tourist who do book a extended trip with the intent of coming to Northern Thailand for a 3 week Songkran?  After sucking "killer air" for three weeks and enjoying the wonders of a brown-hazed sky where there are usually mountains - they'll never come back this time of year, and they'll tell all their friends as well. 

Be careful what you wish for.

Exactly.  

 

[Confuscious]

2 hours ago, quake said:

 

You must be a newbie.

It's been a mad house in pattaya for 27 years that I know of.

and I'm sure,  a lot longer. 

 

During Songkhran in 2004 in Korat, I was walking with my wife and my daughter at the park in Yamoo when a woman and her disabled son (a Siamese) approached us and asked if her son could wish my daughter "Happy Songkhran (Sawasdee Songkhran)".
I replied "Yes" and the boy took a bottle of water and sprayed a little bit of water on the wrists of my daughter and put a little bit of parfumed powder on her cheeks.
I asked my daughter to do the same to the boy, which she did happily.
This was the best Songkhran ever.
Not the splashing buckets of water and ice cubes nor the power guns from today.
 

[mania]

16 hours ago, webfact said:

Thailand is gearing up for an extended three-week Songkran festival this year, expected to significantly boost the country's tourism sector, with projected revenues reaching into the tens of billions of baht.

 

Why did Aerosmith Dream On start playing in my head when I read that? 😉 

[it is what it is]

7 hours ago, Confuscious said:

Wonder how many people will die or be disabled for the rest of their life in the extra Songkhran days.
Luckely, these extra days will bring more tourists money for the care of these people.
What a <deleted> up country .....

 

same as any other day, an increase in road accidents and road deaths/injuries during songkran is not not statistically proven.

[sikishrory]

Like this guy - https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2771686/songkran-confusion-has-tourism-promoters-red-faced

The boost is being felt already

[quake]

7 hours ago, Confuscious said:

During Songkhran in 2004 in Korat, I was walking with my wife and my daughter at the park in Yamoo when a woman and her disabled son (a Siamese) approached us and asked if her son could wish my daughter "Happy Songkhran (Sawasdee Songkhran)".
I replied "Yes" and the boy took a bottle of water and sprayed a little bit of water on the wrists of my daughter and put a little bit of parfumed powder on her cheeks.
I asked my daughter to do the same to the boy, which she did happily.
This was the best Songkhran ever.
Not the splashing buckets of water and ice cubes nor the power guns from today.
 

 

Yes. and that's still the case in many, many parts of Thailand.

But beach road pattaya, same today as it was 27 years ago.

and the water guns were more powerful home made ones back then.

 

 

[quake]

5 minutes ago, sikishrory said:

Like this guy

 

Yes, nice to see it was not a Falang in the news again.

He does look a bit weird.

 

[Darksidedude]

should be just 3 days thats it

[jacko45k]

Yet more grubby rubbing together of hands in anticipation of baht. 

But apart from increasing sales of cheap water pistols, and silly thin cotton clothes, is it really a big money spinner?

Seems like a celebration of elevated numbers of deaths on the roads. 

[Gottfrid]

10 hours ago, quake said:

 

You must be a newbie.

It's been a mad house in pattaya for 27 years that I know of.

and I'm sure,  a lot longer. 

 

Ooops! seems like you are not aware of much. I have been living in Thailand over 25 years by now.

 

Have been single, partying around but now married and have 2 children.

I never talked about how many years it is since it turned into a madhouse, and that is no excuse for destroying a fine, beautiful and respectful tradition.
 

It´s still just overgrown children, that never woke from the teenage binge drinking phase that indulge in such mad activities. But, on the other hand, maybe you are one of them.

 

Also, more about newbie. Do you have a clue about what the biggest newbie in Thailand is among foreigners coming here? It´s the ones that directly take to the bars, hanging out with hookers. After that find their friends in worn out expat wannabees that sits at the same bar year after year, drinking the same amount of beer and listening to the same music every day of their sorry life. Most of them, end up in Pattaya. 

[quake]

7 minutes ago, Gottfrid said:

Ooops! seems like you are not aware of much. I have been living in Thailand over 25 years by now.

 

Have been single, partying around but now married and have 2 children.

I never talked about how many years it is since it turned into a madhouse, and that is no excuse for destroying a fine, beautiful and respectful tradition.
 

It´s still just overgrown children, that never woke from the teenage binge drinking phase that indulge in such mad activities. But, on the other hand, maybe you are one of them.

 

Also, more about newbie. Do you have a clue about what the biggest newbie in Thailand is among foreigners coming here? It´s the ones that directly take to the bars, hanging out with hookers. After that find their friends in worn out expat wannabees that sits at the same bar year after year, drinking the same amount of beer and listening to the same music every day of their sorry life. Most of them, end up in Pattaya. 

 

What a joker you are.

 

[Gottfrid]

12 minutes ago, quake said:

 

What a joker you are.

 

Might that be an answer from Pattaya? When are you seeing your friends at the same round table as yesterday? The Knights of the Many Beers, right?

[quake]

44 minutes ago, Gottfrid said:

Might that be an answer from Pattaya? When are you seeing your friends at the same round table as yesterday? The Knights of the Many Beers, right?

 

Mate, you stop drinking pints of piss and vinegar in the morning.

Try tea or  coffee.

your feel much better.