Masks carved from coconut frond stalks and crowned with rice steamers
Related guide: Phi Ta Khon 2027
Each Phi Ta Khon mask has a face shaped from the thick base of a coconut frond stalk, with a woven bamboo steamer of the kind used for sticky rice sewn on top, which makes the wearer a head taller. The festival in Dan Sai district, Loei, is part of Bun Luang, a merit-making festival, and in 2026 it ran from 20 to 22 June.
Its story comes from the Vessantara Jataka, one of the Buddha's past lives. When Prince Vessantara returned to his city, the townspeople and the spirits of the forest came out to celebrate, and the masked ghosts are those spirits.
In 2026 the first day was given to the invocation of Phra Upakut, and the second was the main ceremonial day, when the masked procession took to the streets. In the programme published by the Tourism Authority of Thailand in past years, this is also the day of the official opening outside the Dan Sai District Office and of the bamboo rockets.
On the third day the festival returns to Wat Phon Chai for 13 consecutive Mahachat sermons, with every village in Dan Sai bringing its sermon texts to the temple in procession.
The full guide to this festival
Phi Ta Khon 2027: dates to be announced (usually June–July), the Dan Sai mask parade in Loei
Full guide: dates, getting there and what you can book →
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