Thailand: New Year festival indicates post-COVID normalcy

Thailand welcome the return of its New Year or Songkran festivities after an enforced break of three years due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Songkran is mostly celebrated from April 13 to April 15, but in some parts of Thailand, like in Chiang Mai, the celebrations last longer. Thais enjoy the festivities by visiting temples, cleaning Buddha statues, and engaging in public water fights, which is seen as a cleansing ritual.

'Huge outpouring of national relief'

Gary Bowerman, a travel analyst based in Kuala Lumpur, said it was a "national relief" for Thailand that Songkran was back.

"Just as before the pandemic, it was a rare opportunity to bring local people, tourists, police, and public workers, together to celebrate and interact together on the streets," he told DW.

"Songkran this year was like a huge outpouring of national relief after three years when the festival was ruined by COVID-19. It came at a time when tourism in the country is starting to recover and reinforced the image of Thailand regaining its pre-pandemic vitality. Songkran festivities are famous with travelers around the world, and the images of good-natured water fights and dousing highlight a side of Thai life that was noticeably missing for three years," he added.

Tourism vital to Thailand's economy

Thailand's economy relies heavily on tourism, but amid the pandemic-fueled global economic downturn, the kingdom saw a 6% decline in 2020.

The economy had been predicted to jump by 3.4% in 2022, which would have been a return to pre-pandemic levels, the World Bank reported. Instead, it only grew by 2.8%, according to Thailand's National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC).

For 2023, new forecasts put the growth at between 2.7% and 3.7% as 30 million tourists are set to arrive.

Water synonymous with Songkran are an escalation of tradition

This year, thousands of overseas visitors were back in Thailand enjoying the Songkran celebrations, happily mixing with locals in the capital of Bangkok. People flocked to the streets and popular tourist areas to celebrate the festival, wearing colorful, flowery shirts, and armed with toy water guns, drenching each other from dusk til dawn.

Tuk-tuk vehicles were crammed with people transporting them throughout the city, while the bars and restaurants that remained open were thriving. No one was safe from keeping dry near the popular Sukhumvit Soi 11 area as revelers used water hoses and buckets of ice-cold water to splash anyone passing by. But it was the popular backpacker area of Khao San Road that was the most pulsating, with thousands crammed in to enjoy the public water fight.

For businesses within Thailand's tourism industry, owners and employees have welcomed the return of visitors and say Songkran marks Thailand's return to normality.

Chan Holland, owner of travel agent Canary Travel Thailand in Bangkok, says customer bookings have returned.

"Bookings were taken before Songkran because during Songkran transportation were fully booked. I'm glad that people in Thailand have something to look forward to. Whenever the majority of the locals stop wearing masks, I would say Thailand is back to normal," she told DW.

Mrs Marthong, who works as a director at a four-star hotel in Bangkok, says her hotel occupancy is almost full.

"The hotel is busier since many travelers can travel again after the COVID crisis. During Songkran we are fully booked. In my opinion, Thailand is back to normal," she told DW.

COVID-19 spike may occur

Nevertheless, Thailand's Bureau of Epidemiology expects COVID-19 cases to rise after the celebrations. The festival has seen more people traveling for the holidays while fewer people are wearing masks, increasing the risk of people catching the virus. Thailand has seen new omicron variants infect people in the country in recent months.

Yet some locals in Thailand aren't worried.

Siripak Patiyanwipas, 27, from Bangkok, spoke to DW after celebrating Songkran on Khao San Road.

"[It was] so good and so much fun even [on] the first day... seems like crowded and stuck on the street. [Songkran] came back after three years, many people have waited for this festival. I am not worried about COVID-19 because I cannot control this flu."

Pravit Rojanaphruk, a veteran journalist at news outlet Khaosod English told DW that the Songkran celebrations have allowed for people to feel "free" again.

"It means many people, particularly young Thais, but also foreign participants, can enjoy water splashing one another again once a year after three years. Sanitation masks are almost completely gone during Songkran," adding to the sense of freedom, he said.

Protests against the monarchy

Relief also comes after Thailand has seen political and social tension in recent years. Thailand saw regular protests in 2020 and 2021, which sometimes turned violent as demonstrators clashed with police. Activists had called for reform of the Thai monarchy and for a change of leadership in government, which is currently led by Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha.

Thailand's next general election has since been slated for May, with several political parties fighting for votes to usurp Prayut's military-backed government.

Pravit added that the Songkran festival allowed for societal tensions to ease temporarily.

"Spots where people can freely splash water at one another without consequence and laugh at others being made wet is an example of the notion of 'communitas' where for a brief period of time, people are allowed to not observe daily rules and thus they feel the society is less oppressive and tolerable. In reality and politically speaking."

The backdrop of repression remains, cautions Pravit, and the brief sense of relief is but a moment, as he says, "Thai society is still rather repressive."

Edited by: John Silk