Chiang Mai Flower Festival 2025

Chiang Mai, Day 81

Well, I'd like to say that this was all planned as part of my meticulous research, but like most of our 'discoveries', we just happened upon it completely by chance, or perhaps the Gods were in our favour!

Today is our last full day in Chiang Mai and there is a little corner of the ancient city at the southern left hand side which we have not yet visited. This area also has a little park, so we reckon that this will be a good (and last) opportunity to cover it. So after breakfast, off we set.

As we were getting closer to the walled city area, we discovered that some of the roads had been blocked off. As it was a Saturday, we thought this was probably due to some street market as there are both Saturday and Sunday street markets where some of the streets are closed off to traffic.

However, as we got closer, we could see that the roads were crowded with people of all ages, and some people were sitting on little seats, or cheering on 'something' that we could not yet see. Lots of people were also dressed up in uniforms or costumes. We soon dsicovered that there was some sort of procession going on and that there were these huge floats being paraded through the street to the delight of all the on-lookers.

It turned out that this was the Chiang Mai 48th Flower Festival, which was taking place from the 7th-9th of February and the parade of floral floats were all making their way to the Nong Buak Hard Public Park which was exactly where we were headed.

This year's Flower Festival was called “The Charm of Blossoms and Beauty of Wiang Ping Flora,” and it aimed to showcase the region’s rich floral heritage and Chiang Mai’s status as a World Festival and Event City. 

The Floral Float Parade on February 8th started at the Nawarat Bridge and featured 25 elaborately decorated floats. It turns out that February is a peak time for blooms, and this draws a significant number of visitors, all eager to experience the city’s lush floral displays, which, of course, also boosts the local economic activity substantially.

As part of this event, the Nong Buak Hard Public Park was transformed into a floral wonderland, displaying over a million flowers from more than 100 tropical and temperate plant species.

I don't think I have ever seen so many beautiful flowers, including various varieties of orchids, in my life!

The park featured interactive installations such as a night-illuminated flower garden, a laser tunnel, and glow-in-the-dark body painting activities, all designed to create a memorable visitor experience. In addition, the festival included performances, craft exhibitions, and stalls selling traditional Thai products, further enriching the cultural tapestry of the event.

We didn't stay until dark or visit in the evening, but I can imagine that it would have been just as stunning then as it was during the day.

Watching the various dance groups and bands all playing just added to the festival and the celebratory atmosphere. It was fantastic and another very notable thing was that there were no loudmouth or alcohol-induced morons about - it was all just good-natured and a really wholesome family event for all ages to enjoy and take part in.

Reading up about the festival, I came across this:

As Chiang Mai continues to draw international attention with its vibrant cultural events, the Flower Festival stands out as a highlight, promising visitors a unique blend of natural beauty and cultural exhibition. This event is an essential part of Chiang Mai’s strategy to remain a leading destination for cultural tourism, further establishing its status as the “Rose of the North.”

I have to admit, it was a pretty spectacular and magical event, and all the organisers and people involved deserve huge applause for it. I can only imagine what this type of event must feel like to those who are horticulturally minded (or good gardeners), as it must be so inspiring and jaw-dropping to see this type of event.

As for us, it just felt like the best and most fitting, albeit totally unexpected way, to both remember and also say goodbye to Chiang Mai.

Cheerio to lovely, sweet Chiang Mai

After a busy afternoon of admiring the festival, the floats, the park, the street performers, and the vendors, we headed home to start packing our bags for our early morning flight the next day.

Chiang Mai, Thailand

8th February 2025