Vegetarian Festival (16 - 19 October 2026)

Day 1)

Meet & Greet at Phuket airport. Transfer to the hotel for check-in. 

In the evening, choose from three of Phuket’s spectacular entertainment experiences: Siam Niramit Phuket, Phuket FantaSea, or Carnival Magic, each combining dazzling performances, cultural elements, elaborate stage productions and vibrant nighttime entertainment.

Day 2) Processions & Fire-Walking

The first day of this two-day festival experience combines historic Chinese religious processions with some of Phuket’s most dramatic purification rituals. The morning begins with the Kathu Shrine and Sui Boon Tong processions, traditionally associated with the historic development of Phuket’s Vegetarian Festival. Kathu Shrine is regarded as the festival’s birthplace, with local tradition dating its origins to 1825, and the procession from Kathu towards Phuket Old Town reflects the enduring Hokkien religious traditions brought by Chinese communities to the island.

Later in the afternoon, participating shrines prepare large beds of burning charcoal for the evening’s Lui Fai (fire-walking) ceremony. After the embers reach extremely high temperatures, Ma Song and purified devotees walk barefoot across the glowing charcoal as an act of purification, spiritual cleansing and the removal of misfortune. With ceremonies taking place at shrines including Jui Tui, Kathu, Sui Boon Tong, Sapam and Bang Neow, the evening offers one of the festival’s most powerful and visually spectacular expressions of belief.

Day 3) Final Blessings & Grand Farewell

The second day marks the climax and spiritual conclusion of the Vegetarian Festival, combining the final street procession with rituals of purification, blessing and farewell. The morning continues with the Lor Rong Shrine procession through the Phuket Old Town area, before devotees gather later in the afternoon for the traditional bridge-crossing ceremony at shrines including Jui Tui, Bang Neow and Sui Boon Tong. Dressed predominantly in white, participants cross the ceremonial bridge as a symbolic passage from misfortune towards purification and protection.

The final night culminates in the spectacular Song Phra (Grand Farewell Procession), when sacred palanquins carrying the deities travel through Phuket Town towards Kiew Tien Keng Shrine at Saphan Hin beside the sea. Accompanied by thousands of devotees, incessant firecrackers, incense and elaborate rituals, the procession reaches the waterfront where priests perform the final ceremonies to send the Nine Emperor Gods and other deities back to the heavens, bringing the nine-day observance to its close.

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Day 4)

Free at leisure until transfer to the airport.