Thailand is well known for her festivals, which take place all the year round. Most of these  festivals  are  influenced  by  Buddhist and Brahminical religions, however, with the  passage  of  time  a  number  of  them  have  been  adopted  in  deference  to   the international practice.

     Actually,  the official New Year's Day of Thailand has undergone several changes. Once it used to fall at the end of November.        Later, during the reign of King Rama V (1868-1910)    it was moved to a date round about April and then New Year's Day was changed to April the first.             The universal practice of celebrating the New Year on January 1 was adopted of changes aimed at modernizing the country.

     Though January 1 is regarded as official New Year,             the majority of Thais still regard the middle of April (Songkran) as their new year's day,  and on this auspicious occasion a weeklong celebration is held throughout the kingdom.      Most of activities on Songkran Day involve water throwing,    building sand pagodas and pouring lustful water on the aged as means of blessing.     To be frank, a celebration on January 1 is not so popular as that of Songkran. Normally, before the upcoming January 1, people will exchange greeting cards and gifts.            Since on this auspicious occasion, a few grand celebrations are held in the kingdom, people take this opportunity to travel upcountry to visit their relatives or spend holidays at a tourist attraction site,           while those stay at  home will prepare food and other necessary items to make merit on the early  morning  of  January 1  and  then take part in various charitable activities held in various places.

     At  the  same time,       several companies take this opportunity to give a bonus and announce promotions to their employees,              who later cash money to buy gifts for relatives and friends before heading to their hometown for a long vacation.

     Obviously, in Thailand people celebrate New Year three times a year, namely; the Thai traditional New Year or Songkran, January 1 and the Chinese New Year.    Out of these,   Songkran is the most joyous occasion,    which draws people from all walks of life to take part in a weeklong celebration.             Meanwhile, the Chinese New Year is important especially for Thai citizen of Chinese origin.                Though it is not a public holiday,    most private organizations will close their business for several days so that the   employers   and   their   employees   will   be   able   to  celebrate  the  auspicious occasion with their relatives at home or spend a long holiday in a place they like.

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