Home » About Lao PDR » Events and Public Holidays
| Jan 1 | New Year�s Day |
|---|---|
| Jan 6 | Pathet Lao Day |
| Jan 20 | Army Day |
| Feb 1 | Chinese New Year |
| Mar 8 | International Women�s Day |
| Mar 22 | Day of the People�s Party |
| Apr 13-15 | Lao New Year (Pi Mai) |
| Apr 21 | Birth of Buddha |
| May 1 | Labour Day |
| Jun 1 | Children�s Day |
| Jun 21 | Khao Pansa (Buddhist Fast begins) |
| Aug 13 | Lao Issara (Day of the Free Laos) |
| Sep 11 | Bouk ok Pansa (Buddhist Fast ends) |
| Oct 12 | Day of Liberation |
| Dec 2 | National Day |
This festival will be held in Sebangfai District, and will include exciting boat races on the Sebangfai River, a trade fair of agricultural products and local handicrafts, and traditional Lao music and dance performances; at the same time, citizens will make offerings to the dead in order to share merit with them.
This festival will include boat races on the Mekong River and a trade fair in Luang Prabang city; during the Khao Salak festival, citizens will visit local temples to make offerings to the dead in order to share merit with them.
This festival is held in association with Ok Pansa, which marks the end of the monks� three-e-month fast and retreat during the rainy season; a long-boat racing competition is held in order to worship the river spirits.
In Vientiane, the water festival held during Ok Pansa is spectacular; on the first day at dawn, donations and offerings are made at temples around the city; in the evening, candlelight processions are held around the temples, and hundreds of colorful floats decorated with flowers, incense and candles are set adrift down the Mekong River in thanksgiving to the river spirits; the next day, a popular and exciting boat racing competition is held on the Mekong.
This religious festival is held in and around That Luang stupa, the national symbol of Laos, where hundreds of monks gather to accept alms and floral votives from the people; the festival includes a grand fireworks display at night, and a trade fair, showcasing Lao products, will take place during the day.
This festival will be held on the grounds of the splendid That Inhang Stupa located just outside the city of Savannakhet. An International Trade Fair will include exhibitions of toruism products from Laos Thaialnd and Vietnam as well as performances of music and dance and a drumming competition.