The Chiang Mai Flower Festival takes place in Chiang Mai, Thailand from February 5^th to 7^th. The yearly festival dates back to 1977 and has since earned a reputation as one of the best in the world similar to the Japan Sakura Flower Festival. The highlight of the festival is the parade of floats decorated with tropical flowers and even exotic orchids.

The Chinese New Year is celebrated in Bangkok’s China Town on February 14^th, 2010. The celebrations take place along Yaowarat Road, known as Golden Road.

February 20^th, 2010 marks the beginning of the Elephant Festival in Laos, the nation’s largest event celebrating both the historical and present-day ties between man and elephant. With attendance peaking at 80,000 last year, the Elephant Festival will come full circle to be held in the small village where it originated: Ban Viengkeo, Hongsa District, Sayaboury Province on the 20th and 21st of February 2010.

March features the World Thai Martial Arts Festival and the Waikru Muaythai Ceremony in Thailand’s Ayutthaya. The festival dates are March 10^th – 17^th, 2010.

Wai Kru is an ancient tradition still practiced today in combination with Martial Arts. The ceremony is usually performed to rousing Thai music from pipes and drums. During Wai Kru the athlete pays homage to his teacher and gains encouragement from him.

A highlight during the month of March is the King’s Cup Elephant Polo Tournament (specific dates are not available). The event is organized by the Anantara Golden Triangle Resort in Chiang Rai. A blessing ceremony will be held before the opening match where monks sprinkle holy water over both players and animals to ensure a successful tournament. In addition, a parade of northern traditional-style dancers, hill-tribe villagers in traditional costume, elephant spirit men (Khru Ba Yai), colorfully decorated pachyderms and teams holding up their respective country flags will kick off the weeklong competition held on the banks of the Ruak River which divides Thailand from Burma.

The tournament was introduced to Thailand in 2001 by Anantara Resorts and is a charitable event that raises money for the country’s National Elephant Institute in Lampang, northern Thailand. To date the tournament has raised over US$200,000 for the National Elephant Institute, which provides medical care, sustenance, employment, and mahout training to Thailand’s elephant population. For additional information please send an e-mail to infogt@anantara.com

In Bhutan the following festivals will take place during the months of February and March:

The highlight of any festival in Bhutan are the masked dances performed by the monks. All the dances once appeared in the Buddhist master’s vision during meditation and the moves and steps are strictly followed as it was performed in the past. Should you visit Bhutan during festival time, we highly recommend that you chose one of the smaller village festivals which are usually attended by less tourists and more local people.