Government allocates THB183m for Maha Songkran World Water Festival

Nearly 5 million visitors expected to generate over THB26 billion

The government's soft power committee has allocated 183 million baht to organise the 2025 Maha Songkran World Water Festival, in line with the administration’s “Golden Year of Thai Tourism” vision.

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Sports and Tourism Minister Sorawong Thienthong said that the National Committee on Soft Power Development, chaired by Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, has decided to appropriate the amount from the central budget and seek some budgetary support from the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) to hold the event.

Sorawong said that the 2025 Maha Songkran World Water Festival, set to run from April 12-16 at Bangkok’s Sanam Luang, is expected to generate at least 26.564 billion baht to Thailand from the anticipated 4.8 million visitors joining the event.

According to the TAT, the celebration would include parades, music concerts, an Electronic Dance Music festival, temple fair, and food fair.

The event is also a part of the government’s “Amazing Thailand Grand Tourism and Sports Year 2025” campaign, which aims to make the country a destination for year-round tourism festivals, high-profile sporting tournaments, and exclusive travel privileges this year.
 Sorawong said the TAT also supports Songkran celebrations in other provinces so as to distribute income to other regions.

“This is to elevate the status of the Thai Songkran tradition, especially after being recognised by UNESCO, to the level of a global event as well as spreading tourists from major cities to various other cities,” he said.

Songkran made a splash on the world stage in December 2023, after UNESCO inscribed the traditional Thai New Year on its Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity List.

According to the TAT, as many as 4.41 million visitors are expected to visit Thailand from April 12-16, generating not less than 19.2 billion baht across the Kingdom.

(2025/03/19-00:00)