Yi Peng in Chiang Mai - Mae Jo Lantern Release Guide

Because it's so difficult to find the information that actually helps, here it all is, in one place.

First, a little background.

Yi Peng and Loi Krathong are two different holidays, held on the same weekend. Loi Krathong happens all over Thailand. Loi Krathong literally means "floating lantern" or "floating basket" and you can see people putting little candles on lotus leaves in any body of water throughout Thailand. It's nice, but that's not what this post is about.

This is about Yi Peng.

Yi Peng translates to "Second Full Moon." This refers to the second month of the Lanna lunar calendar (not the Thai lunar calendar, which mostly coincides with our regular calendar). The Lanna lunar calendar is based on the harvest, so a new one starts in October, making the second month November. So this answers our first question:

When is it?

*Sept 2015 Update: Several websites are claiming there will not be a free local event in 2015, but only the "international" ticketed event (now 4500THB) on November 25, 2015. I don't believe them, so I'll keep digging until I find out for sure.

*Another Update: I believe this site. It looks like the Thai government told the organizers that they can only launch the lanterns on one night - Loi Krathong. The free Lanna Kathina event will happen on November 21, 2015. However, the organizers are claiming that they will NOT be launching lanterns that day. I still only partly believe that, since the lantern release is a big part of the ceremony. I think they're just trying to cut down the number of tourists that show up.

The festival falls on the Saturday before the full moon in November. So check this link: full moon calendar and plan to be there the weekend before the full moon in November - this could be in October. There is another festival on the Saturday afterward, but it costs $100 and is set up for tourists - it's more comfortable and less stressful, but less authentic (and a lot less lanterns).

Keep in mind that the festival is organized by a local group of monks - not by Chiang Mai. You won't find ANY information on the event on any of Chiang Mai's info pages, or even in the city or at your hotel. Which, I suppose, is why you're here and why I'm even writing this post. The group will put out a press release a few weeks before the event. Look for a pdf in the search results here: Lanna Kathina Ceremony (Yeah, as crazy as that is, to find what you're looking for, don't search for Yi Peng or Loi Krathong.) The actual festival that you want to see is the Lanna Kathina Ceremony organized by the Lanna Dhutanka monks.

Where is it?

It's on a field next to Lanna Dhutanka's temple, sometimes called Tudongkhasathan Lanna. It is NOT at Mae Jo University, as we found out. It's above it. Here are the actual Lat/Long coordinates: 18.911305, 99.013607. Good. No confusion anymore.

How should I get there?

Traffic is a nightmare. It's basically a parking lot after the ceremony. And songthaews and tuk tuks are way more expensive than they should be (600B for a private tuk tuk and 1500B for a private songthaew) or if you try to just join one, you better speak thai or you'll pay a lot and they're way overcrowded.

Also, songthaews and tuk tuks wait on the main road (by overpass #2 on the map below), so there's a 2km (1.25 mile) walk to and from the actual festival grounds.

The only way you should even consider going is by renting a moto in town (usually around US$6). It's a pretty straight shot all the way, so even if you're not a super experienced scooter rider, you'll be fine cruising up the shoulder at a comfortable speed. After the ceremony gets out, you can take the shoulder and go around all the cars and buses that will be hopelessly stuck there for hours.

Use Google Maps to get to Maejo University, then follow this map the rest of the way.

When you get to that big intersection, you'll see plenty of signs saying "Maejo University" and you'll know you're in the right place. This is about 30 minutes up from Chiang Mai, so you will pass through a few major intersections before you get to this point, so watch for the university.

Once you go straight through this intersection, you'll pass under two pedestrian overpasses. After the second one, make a u-turn when there is a break in the median. Immediately after you go under that second overpass again, take a left and follow the road.

Note #1. At this intersection, if there are no police, take a left and park in somebody's front yard. It'll cost about a dollar (we paid 20 baht) and they'll watch it for you all night. When we arrived around 2pm, police were already set up with barricades. So if they won't let you take a left, go straight, then bear left at the fork, and take a left to come in from the back roads.

Note #2. If you miss this turn, no big deal. We did too. This road is residential and hardly anybody is on it. You'll get to a long wall on your left which is the backside of the field. Turn around and find a road that goes through.

Parking/Note #3. Although the event is up the road to your right, there's nowhere to park up there. So take the left and park in somebody's front lawn and pay the 20 baht for them to watch it. This entire road is lined on both sides with food vendors and people selling lanterns. You can buy food and bring it in, but you can't bring in lanterns.

Also note that there is no other way across the river than the intersection at Note #1. This creates a serious bottleneck before and after the event. Just be warned.

What time is it?

The "merit making ceremony" (Lanna Kathina, i.e. the actual reason for this entire event) takes place from 1pm to 4pm in the open pavilion/hall off to the north side of the field. People line up and two by two hand gifts to the monks. It's not really open to the public, but if you wander over to the edge, you can watch for a little bit without getting in anybody's way.

I suggest arriving no later than 3pm, since it gets pretty hectic and packed outside the event and the good spots are all pretty much taken by then. The actual launch isn't until about 7:45, but there is stuff going on from about 5:30ish. If you want to read about the event and the experience, go to my other post [here].

They shut everything down (lights off) and kick everyone out at 9pm. Then you join the throngs and make your way out to whatever transportation you have waiting.

How much is it?

The event is a religious ceremony that they have graciously opened to the public. Keep this in mind throughout the event - be respectful and follow their instructions. They're letting you take part in a sacred tradition.

Because it is a religious ceremony, they won't ever charge people to participate. You are not required to purchase a lantern (you could just sit inside and watch in wonder and awe). If you would like to buy a lantern (or Khom Loi as they're called in Thai), they sell them inside the event for 100 baht each (about US$3). You can buy as many as you want. They have tons. You are not allowed to bring in lanterns from outside. This is because they use approved lanterns with biodegradable materials and safe burners/strings.

So all in all, if you rent a scooter, pay for parking, buy two lanterns, and grab some food, you'll spend about 450 baht (about $15). (Food ranges from 10 to 30 baht. We bought a delicious plate of pad thai for 15 baht.)

Where should I sit?

Here's a screen grab from the official site of the event (this is the site for the $100 one, if you want to go to that, but the location is the same).

Only invited guests that participate in the merit making ceremony in the Buddha Image Hall (from 1pm to 4pm) are allowed within the circle. Regular people like us are required to stay outside of it until after the launch. During the ceremony, monks walk in from the back along the path straight into the "ceremony zone." Then, monks and others walk around the circle with candles. The intersection where these two paths meet gets packed with obnoxious amateur photographers who won't sit down.

Your best bet is to sit along either one of these paths if you're super into photography/videography. If you're going just for the experience, anywhere is a good seat. It's actually probably better to not sit along the edge, but sit in the middle of the field so you have lanterns all around you.

What should I wear/bring?

Because it is a religious ceremony and you are on religious grounds, they have strict guidelines on what you cannot wear. No short shorts (they recommend pants, but many people wore knee-length shorts and they were fine), no singlets/tanks or bare shoulders. Dress modestly and respectfully, like you were going to church. Wear white if possible.

Bring sunscreen since you'll be sitting out in the sun for a few hours before the event starts.

Bring some snacks and bottled water. They let you bring in outside food. Alcohol is NOT permitted - you and your drinks will be kicked out if they catch you.

Anything else I need to know?

I can't think of anything. If you have other questions, ask in the comments and I'll answer them. Enjoy the festival. It is an amazing experience that I hope everyone gets a chance to see at least once in their life.

Brian and Isa from everythingBrisa

If you want to read more about the experience of attending Yi Peng in Chiang Mai, check out my other post here: Yi Peng in Chiang Mai - An Amazing Experience

Or watch our video:

Yi Peng in Chiang Mai - Amazing Experience

I can show you pictures and videos and tell you every little detail about Yi Peng in Chiang Mai, but nothing you find online could ever do it justice. This is something everyone needs to experience for themselves.

This festival was the reason we came to Asia in the first place. After seeing Tangled...

...we looked up floating lanterns and found this festival and we've been planning it ever since. We had built up our expectations way beyond what they reasonably should have been, but the festival far exceeded our imagination. It was amazing. I still can't believe that just happened. It was so surreal. So magical. So uplifting and spiritual. Isa and I almost cried during the event. More than once.

We've done a lot of amazing things through the years - we've been extremely blessed with unbelievable opportunities around the world. But I've never quite felt like anything I've done was a "dream come true." Even walking on the Great Wall of China (which I've wanted to do my entire life). But this was. I think because it's so unreal. It really felt like a dream.

We got there around 2pm. By the way, if you want to know details like when, where, how to get there, and wear to sit, check out my other post - Maejo Lantern Release Detailed Guide. This post will be about the experience of attending the Maejo Lantern Release of the Yi Peng Festival in Chiang Mai.

When we arrived, the grounds were still pretty empty.

We staked out a spot on the aisle and took turns wandering around the complex.

This early, they let you wander anywhere you want. I walked around the circular path toward the back of the buddha stage.

All those poles with the plastic wrapped around the top are the candles that will be used later to light the Khom Loi (floating lanterns).

Off to the north side of the field, we watched part of the actual merit ceremony (Lanna Kathina). It's the religious ceremony that this entire event is based on, so I'm glad we got there early enough to see a little bit of it.

We purchased two lanterns (khom loi) so we could participate in the ceremony - they were just 100B (about $3) each. We figured we'd light one and release it with everyone else and then we'd have a second one to light and get our picture taken with it.

We played games on our iPad Mini and people-watched for a few hours. The crowds kept filling in the spaces all around us and by 5pm, it looked like this:

By this point, green-shirted Thai volunteers were monitoring the walkways and sections to ensure everyone stayed peaceful and organized.

Around 5:45, things started getting exciting. Two volunteers got up on a platform in front of us to demonstrate the proper method to meditate and pray...

...and then how to light and release the lanterns.

As they demonstrated, explanations were given in Thai, English, Japanese, and Chinese. In case you're wondering, here is how to properly participate:

1. Meditate to relax your body and mind
2. Light the candle
3. Unfold and extend the lantern to its full size
4. Light the lantern and wait until it's completely full of hot air
5. Make a wish together
6. Release the lantern and let it carry your wish to Lord Buddha

By 6pm, the moon started to rise above the trees just behind the stage. All the junior monks were seated and ready to begin.

At 6:20, the senior monks entered from the back of the grounds and walked along the pathway next to us to join the other monks on the stage.

Once on stage, they prayed and chanted in the old sanscrit language. I thought it was great (reminiscent of long hours I'd spent listening to Cambodian monks chanting and praying over a decade ago - I just love the sound and cadence of it), but you could tell people were getting antsy because they were getting up and moving around and being irreverent and a little disrespectful for the sacred ceremony they were attending.

People were still trying to come in from the back and by 7pm, the place was packed to capacity...

...and our green-shirted friends tried their best in very broken English to guide people over to the sides by the little reservoirs - obstructed view, but at least they were inside. Meanwhile, thousands of other patrons that couldn't get in started lighting lanterns outside the event space. You could feel the excitement and anticipation building.

Just before 7:30, monks led people who were involved in the merit ceremony earlier in the day around the circle with candles.

Be nice - I was using my point and shoot which takes 1080p HD video, but it's not so great at the night shots.

And then they had us light our candles!! That's when things got really exciting. It was all the poor announcers could do to get us to NOT light our lanterns. All four languages kept rotating, "Do not light the sky lantern." But people couldn't help themselves.

A few minutes later, they said to light the lanterns but to hold them - don't release yet. At this point, soft and beautiful music is playing throughout the field and the energy and excitement is almost overwhelming. We're all holding our lanterns, letting them fill with hot air, trying to breathe and hold back happy tears. Just trying to take a mental snapshot of this moment so we can recall every detail once it's over.

 

And then the command came in Thai, but we all knew what it meant - release!

If there were ever a moment to take your breath away, this is it.

We watched as our lantern joined with thousands of others and gently soared into the sky. We smiled and hugged and tried to really grasp that we just did that. Something we had anticipated and planned for years - it was actually happening. This amazing event was real. We were living in a scene from Tangled!

We continued to smile until our cheeks hurt. Hearts full of emotion on the brink of overflowing into tears. It's a feeling that is so wondrous and extraordinary that it's hard to express but even harder to contain. Everywhere you look is happiness and magic.

We lit our second lantern and asked our neighbors to photograph us...

...and then we wandered the grounds to explore and to watch others light and launch their lanterns.

The lanterns from the initial release kept rising farther and farther into the heavens and formed their own fiery constellation in the distance.

And then, because apparently this scene wasn't already perfect enough, they started shooting off fireworks.

Around 8:30, over by the reservoir on the south, a group of monks lined up to launch their lanterns in succession right down the line. It's super cool and it looked like a tradition, so I highly recommend making your way over there.

At 9pm, they shut the lights off within the field and kick everyone out onto the streets outside. Imagine 10,000 people jammed onto a small road, made a little smaller by the food carts on both sides.

We moseyed along at a snail's pace until we got to our moto, upon which we sat for a few minutes waiting for the crowds to die down a little. Once the street was somewhat walkable again, we ventured out and got some pad thai and donuts. Yum and yum. Then we got on our moto and took the back road out and around and up the shoulder past the buses and cars hopelessly trying to get out to the main road. We made it through in a matter of minutes and then took off - the main road was clear and moving fast, so getting back to town is no problem.

We got back home and just sprawled out on the bed, still on an emotional high from our amazing night. We did it. Everything we had planned for - the whole reason for this trip - everything was counting on this night being a success, and it was so much more than we could have ever hoped for.

For more info on how to get there, where to sit, when the festival is held, and other important details, check out my other post: Yi Peng in Chiang Mai - Maejo Release Detailed Guide

You can also watch our video about the whole experience here:

Chiang Mai Temples and Floating Lanterns

Today, we had one mission: practice shooting floating lanterns in low light so we don't screw up tomorrow. We've read reviews of the Mae Jo Lantern Release for Yi Peng/Loi Krathong and it all happens at once and it's so fast and if you don't get it right the first time, you don't get a second chance. Ultimately, we want to get a picture that shows the person's face lit by the lantern, but not let the lantern be so bright that it's blown out. Kinda like this, one of our shots from this evening:

And do our best to not end up with shots like this...

...unless, of course, artistically that's what we were going for. :)

But before the sun went down and we could practice, we wanted to see as much of Chiang Mai as we could. Songthaews are ridiculously overpriced, so I convinced Isa that I knew how to drive a scooter in a third world country (which is true, I figured Thai street rules aren't much different than Mexican rules of the road). We found a friendly place not far from our hotel and we rented a scooter for 200 baht per day (about $6).

The scooter turned out to be the best idea ever. We were able to go wherever we wanted whenever we wanted. We took the map from our hotel and, after wandering hopelessly for a gas station which the two Thai people we asked pointed to a place on the map and said they're everywhere (they're not), we picked a few temples and went exploring.

First up, this temple wasn't even on our map. But we drove by and thought it looked cool, so we stopped in.

It also had a small, free museum next to it. The museum had some amazing lifelike sculptures (think, Museum of Natural History), but it wasn't well lit. We think they could really make something of the place and promote it to tourists, because it's so close to being cool and worth seeing, but not quite yet.

Our next stop was Wat Chedi Luang. We saw the temple and parked the moto on a side street, then wandered around the grounds for a while before we realized that this wasn't Wat. Chedi Luang. We were actually at Wat Pan Tao (which wasn't on our map either, but it was where Chedi Luang should have been, so we thought maybe our map was wrong).

We affectionately nicknamed this one, "Buddha Beach."

We ended up coming back here at night to take pictures of the lanterns then (more practice):

Next temple: Wat Chedi Luang

Turns out, Wat Chedi Luang is next door to Wat Pan Tao. So the map was right after all. This was a former resting spot of the Emerald Buddha that we just saw down in Bangkok. Back in the day, when Chiang Mai was the Capitol, it resided here to be close to the king. It was in this big stupa behind the wat.

And here's the wat:

It's got a big grand entrance with a gold statue out front too, so you know it's the right place. The inside of the wat was cool. They ran wires across the hall and had these banners hanging about 8 feet off the ground making a faux ceiling when you were under them (effectively hiding buddha from view when you're under them, but making an otherwise big space a little more intimate). I don't know if it's always like this or if this is for the holiday, but it looked cool.

Wat Phra Singh

We drove straight down the road and ran right into our next destination: 7-11. Just kidding. But we did go in for some a/c. Wat Phra Singh is cool. It's a pretty big complex and it looks like they had just painted (again, maybe they made it look extra nice for the holiday, but we'll take it).

This temple had a nice shady plaza around it with words of wisdom/proverbs on each of the trees. It was fun to go around and read them all.

Leaving Wat Phra Singh, we saw Sister Missionaries riding their bikes. As we were not sure where the church in Chiang Mai is, we quick jumped on the moto and took off in pursuit. We drove about 30 seconds and found the church! We went in to find the Sisters and we asked them about the Mae Jo lantern release tomorrow, but they had no idea what we were talking about. :/

Next up, we headed south outside the city walls to Wat Sri Suphan. The main temple was pretty cool. I don't think we've seen one with a 4-tiered roof yet.

But off to the side was a silver temple, which was super cool and unique - a big departure from the gold and reds used in everything we've seen thus far.

There was only one problem...

So I went in and took pictures so Isa could see it.

On the way back to the hotel, we drove along the outside of the moat around the city (random insight: the road along the outside of the moat is one-way clockwise, but the one on the inside of the moat is one-way counterclockwise, so plan accordingly or you'll have to loop back around like we did earlier today) and passed by this one, so we stopped in.

Wat Lok Molee

Then we decided to go up to Mae Jo and get a feel for how long it will take to get up there and also just to familiarize ourselves with the area and the roads. We don't want to have any mishaps tomorrow. It took about 45 minutes to drive up in the scooter from our hotel on the northeast corner of the old city. 

We got to Mae Jo University and security was pretty tight at the entrance. Fortunately, they stopped somebody else right in front of us so we got in around them. We explored the campus for a while, and although there were a couple open fields, nothing looked quite right. After about 30 minutes or so, we gave up and drove back to town. So after all the research we've done, we still needed to do more. If you want to read all of our research in one place, click here for the complete guide to Yi Peng in Chiang Mai.

As we were driving back into town, we spotted a line of floating lanterns going up from the same spot, so we drove there. It ended up being along the river bank. We parked the moto and went down to the water's edge. We practiced taking pictures and video from different angles and with various settings (messing with shutter speed and ISO mostly), and just enjoyed being in the middle of a lot of fun. 

People are SO happy here. Possibly because it's the holiday, but partly (I'm sure) because they're Thai and Thai people are just so smiley.

We also swung by some of the gates to the city, which are also lit up for Loi Krathong.

When checking out Tha Phae Gate on the east side of the city, we wandered through the food market just outside the walls. We ended up getting these egg rolls for 30 baht ($1US) which were fantastic! We love Thai food!

Isa also picked up some sweet sunglasses for $5 at the Chiang Mai night market (which sadly isn't as cool as we hoped it would be). The sunglasses were amazing though. The guy took a metal nail and tried to scratch the crap out of the lenses but they came out unscathed. Bought.