Uploaded May 2018 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Travel dangerously at this incredible event in Northeastern Thailand
Every year on the second weekend of May, the people of Yasothon and surrounding provinces gather together to launch huge homemade rockets into the sky. A single rocket weighs over 100 kilograms and is packed full of enough gunpowder to keep it aloft for over five minutes!
The tradition behind the festival is that the rockets are symbolically seeding the skies to bring on the rainy season which is crucial here for the planting of rice - the staple crop. There is also a lot of symbolism around fertility and virility.
This is one of our favorite cultural festivals in Thailand. Even if "cultural festival" sounds like the kind of thing you normally skip, you will like this one. It's very local with few foreigners going, and something you'll probably never forget. However, it is not exactly the safest festival. They claim to be accident-free the last few years, but it is definitely dangerous, especially if you're watching the rockets from up close or checking out the tents where they are packing in the rocket fuel.
For information on Bun Bang Fai Rocket Festival in Yasothon, check out our event page about the festival here: https://itsbetterinthailand.com/event/bun-bang-fai-roc…estival-yasothon/
Social:
facebook.com/itsbetterinthailand
instagram.com/itsbetterinthailand
twitter.com/itsbetterinthai
pinterest.com/itsbetterinthailand
Website:
itsbetterinthailand.com
Music: Jeb Jing Jeb Jai by Saksiam Petchchompu & Pornsurapon Petchseethong, from the amazing compilation album Sound of Siam vol. 2, available from Soundway Records here soundwayrecords.bandcamp.com/album/sound-of-siam-volume-2-molam-luk-thung-from-north-east-thailand-1970-1982
Travel dangerously at this incredible event in Northeastern Thailand
Every year on the second weekend of May, the people of Yasothon and surrounding provinces gather together to launch huge homemade rockets into the sky. A single rocket weighs over 100 kilograms and is packed full of enough gunpowder to keep it aloft for over five minutes!
The tradition behind the festival is that the rockets are symbolically seeding the skies to bring on the rainy season which is crucial here for the planting of rice - the staple crop. There is also a lot of symbolism around fertility and virility.
This is one of our favorite cultural festivals in Thailand. Even if "cultural festival" sounds like the kind of thing you normally skip, you will like this one. It's very local with few foreigners going, and something you'll probably never forget. However, it is not exactly the safest festival. They claim to be accident-free the last few years, but it is definitely dangerous, especially if you're watching the rockets from up close or checking out the tents where they are packing in the rocket fuel.
For information on Bun Bang Fai Rocket Festival in Yasothon, check out our event page about the festival here: https://itsbetterinthailand.com/event/bun-bang-fai-roc…estival-yasothon/
Social:
facebook.com/itsbetterinthailand
instagram.com/itsbetterinthailand
twitter.com/itsbetterinthai
pinterest.com/itsbetterinthailand
Website:
itsbetterinthailand.com
Music: Jeb Jing Jeb Jai by Saksiam Petchchompu & Pornsurapon Petchseethong, from the amazing compilation album Sound of Siam vol. 2, available from Soundway Records here soundwayrecords.bandcamp.com/album/sound-of-siam-volume-2-molam-luk-thung-from-north-east-thailand-1970-1982
