2 nights in Lampang + a night in Phrae completed, the real start of my Esarn trip began with Dan Sai & the 2024 Phi Ta Khon ghost festival.
I've been going to Dan Sai for the Phi Ta Khon ghost festival since 1993 (?) & have been multiple (20?) times since.
www.gt-rider.com
The event is arguably the most outrageous festival you can see in Thailand, due to the fact it is a fertility festival to celebrate the start of the rainy season & a wish for good weather for growing rice in the coming season. Over time the phallic symbols seem to dominate the event & it is now most definitely on the TAT sponsored tourist event trail.
Getting a room can be a challenge & if you don't get in early everything in Dan Sai city will be booked 4-6 weeks before hand.
You don't get much for 700 baht @ festival time: the Dan Sai Resort cheap-charlie rooms, usually 350 baht non-festival time.
In 2024 I had my roomed booked & paid for in March!
Having stayed @ the Dan Sai Resort for several years on account of the super location, downtown central Dan Sai, 200 metres from the Krua Khun Nai restaurant & the best spot in Dan Sai city for observing the festivities, I find it hard to change.
The Krua Kun Nai
However, at the DS Resort in 2024, there was an issue with the young kids on their hot little bikers, parked next door right outside my room, drinking & partying until the wee hours.
Therefore in 2025 I will lash out & take a 2000 baht + bungalow in the real resort section, further away from the delinquents.
My booking in 2025 however, will only be for 2 nights & not 3, as has been my habit for years.
The novelty of the 4am spirit ceremonies, no longer has appeal, due to the fact the event is now overwhelmed by the media!
In 2024 my Dan Sai friends claimed it was the biggest Phi Ta Khon crowd ever, & certainly the town was packed.
There were multiple music stages.
Photography becomes a challenge & the way to go is to don't be shy.
Get in there & take your happy pics.
Despite the "football crowds," I still enjoy coming to Dan Sai for the festival, nowadays mainly to hook up with old friends from a couple of decades ago & just hang out.
Friends from 93/95.
Khun Nai, owner of the Krua Khun Nai.
An old mate, whom I did not recognize until he took off his mask.
What is also impressive & amazing are the hundreds of young Thai bikers who come on their hotted up old classic scooters & little bikes, to camp out overnight, relax & enjoy themselves to the max.
On the way down at the PTT Uttaradit I met some young kids from Lamphun on their way to the festival.
They had left Lamphun at 4am to ride down & were having some trouble with their bikes.
Fortunately, one of the guys in the group was a mechanic, however he was under a bit of pressure sorting everything out for them to be on the road gain asap.
Repairs were taking long enough for a sweet pillion to have a power nap in the meantime.
To be continued..
I've been going to Dan Sai for the Phi Ta Khon ghost festival since 1993 (?) & have been multiple (20?) times since.
Early Dan Sai - Phi Ta Khon Festivals
I've been going to Dan Sai for Phi Ta Khon festival for over 25 years & most of them have been fabulous amazing rides & events; although memories of some of the events in the early years before it became a TAT Thailand mega event are a bit hazy. Those earlier events were always folksy & often...
www.gt-rider.com
The event is arguably the most outrageous festival you can see in Thailand, due to the fact it is a fertility festival to celebrate the start of the rainy season & a wish for good weather for growing rice in the coming season. Over time the phallic symbols seem to dominate the event & it is now most definitely on the TAT sponsored tourist event trail.
Getting a room can be a challenge & if you don't get in early everything in Dan Sai city will be booked 4-6 weeks before hand.
You don't get much for 700 baht @ festival time: the Dan Sai Resort cheap-charlie rooms, usually 350 baht non-festival time.
In 2024 I had my roomed booked & paid for in March!
Having stayed @ the Dan Sai Resort for several years on account of the super location, downtown central Dan Sai, 200 metres from the Krua Khun Nai restaurant & the best spot in Dan Sai city for observing the festivities, I find it hard to change.
The Krua Kun Nai
However, at the DS Resort in 2024, there was an issue with the young kids on their hot little bikers, parked next door right outside my room, drinking & partying until the wee hours.
Therefore in 2025 I will lash out & take a 2000 baht + bungalow in the real resort section, further away from the delinquents.
My booking in 2025 however, will only be for 2 nights & not 3, as has been my habit for years.
The novelty of the 4am spirit ceremonies, no longer has appeal, due to the fact the event is now overwhelmed by the media!
In 2024 my Dan Sai friends claimed it was the biggest Phi Ta Khon crowd ever, & certainly the town was packed.
There were multiple music stages.
Photography becomes a challenge & the way to go is to don't be shy.
Get in there & take your happy pics.
Despite the "football crowds," I still enjoy coming to Dan Sai for the festival, nowadays mainly to hook up with old friends from a couple of decades ago & just hang out.
Friends from 93/95.
Khun Nai, owner of the Krua Khun Nai.
An old mate, whom I did not recognize until he took off his mask.
What is also impressive & amazing are the hundreds of young Thai bikers who come on their hotted up old classic scooters & little bikes, to camp out overnight, relax & enjoy themselves to the max.
On the way down at the PTT Uttaradit I met some young kids from Lamphun on their way to the festival.
They had left Lamphun at 4am to ride down & were having some trouble with their bikes.
Fortunately, one of the guys in the group was a mechanic, however he was under a bit of pressure sorting everything out for them to be on the road gain asap.
Repairs were taking long enough for a sweet pillion to have a power nap in the meantime.
To be continued..
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