Phuket Vegetarian Festival Wraps Up
Phuket Vegetarian Festival Wraps Up on Sunday the 9th of October, culminating in closing ceremonies and festivities throughout the island. Thousands of people, both locals and tourists, gathered at shrines and on the streets of Phuket to send off the Emperor Gods once again.
UPDATE: The 2021 Phuket Vegetarian Festival is scheduled from Tuesday, October 5th to Friday, October 15th. The whole festival is expected to be conducted in strict Covid 19 guidelines.
Phuket Vegetarian Festival Wraps Up
On the final day of the festival, street processions and closing preparations began early on Sunday morning. One of the main shrines, Sui Boon Tong, saw many locals and participants join the morning street procession.
The festivities continued throughout the day, but the Grand Finale’s most impressive, extended into the late evening.
As a farewell to the Nine Emperor Gods, participants joined a large street procession from various shrines, walking all the way to Saphan Hin. This culminated in a massive display of fireworks, firecrackers, smoke and lighting as thousands made their farewells and thanks to the Gods. This final procession is to accompany the Gods as they depart Phuket once again.
The streets were buzzing with great displays of firecrackers, fireworks and smoke. Local people joined in on the festivities by setting off firecrackers on the side of the roads right around town. Before midnight, all the shrines that partook in the event held a farewell ritual before the lantern poles. The lantern poles were raised to mark the start of the festivities.
They have lowered again after the closing ceremonies, marking the end of the festival.
The Phuket Vegetarian Festival is a huge event, drawing visitors from around Asia and the world. It can be witnessed in other parts of Thailand but is the largest here in Phuket. Phuket has a large population of Chinese ancestry, making the island the original birthplace of the event.
In 2016, the Phuket Vegetarian Festival was expected to generate around THB 40 million in revenue for the national economy.
See our gallery of all the fantastic photos from the Phuket Vegetarian Festival event. Or read more about what happened at the event.
