Yi Peng Lantern Festival 2026: Chiang Mai’s Sky Lantern Dates, Tickets & Tips

If a single image comes to mind when people picture Thailand’s lantern festivals, it’s probably thousands of glowing paper lanterns drifting into a night sky over Chiang Mai. That’s Yi Peng, and this year’s main ticketed event runs the two nights of November 24 and 25, 2026.

Yi Peng vs. Loy Krathong: what’s the difference?

These two festivals happen around the same time each year and are easy to mix up:

•          Loy Krathong is the nationwide Thai festival where people float small decorated baskets (krathong) on rivers and waterways to pay respects to the water spirits. It’s celebrated across the whole country.

•          Yi Peng is a specifically Northern Thai (Lanna) tradition, centered on Chiang Mai, where sky lanterns (khom loy) are released into the air. It happens around the same lunar calendar date as Loy Krathong but is its own distinct cultural practice.

In short: krathong float on water, khom loy float into the sky, and Chiang Mai is where you go to see the second one done at scale.

The 2026 CAD Yi Peng event

The best-known ticketed mass lantern release is run by CAD (Chiang Mai, Alive, Delightful) over two nights:

•          Dates: Tuesday, November 24 and Wednesday, November 25, 2026

•          Venue: CAD Cultural Center Lanna, Mae On district, outside central Chiang Mai

•          Ticket price range: Roughly 4,900–16,900 THB depending on tier

•          Important: Tickets are non-refundable, and official tiers have sold out in past checks, if you want to attend this specific ticketed release, book well ahead rather than assuming availability closer to the date.

Other ways to experience Yi Peng

You don’t have to buy a ticketed release to experience the festival atmosphere. In the days around November 24-25, expect:

•          City-wide lantern displays throughout Chiang Mai’s Old City, with khom loy and decorative lanterns hung along streets and at temples.

•          Floating krathong on the Ping River and at temple grounds, tied to the parallel Loy Krathong observance.

•          Smaller, independent lantern releases organized by hotels, resorts, and tour operators outside the main CAD event, worth checking if the flagship event is sold out.

Practical planning tips

•          Book accommodation early. Chiang Mai hotel availability tightens significantly in the days around Yi Peng, and prices rise accordingly.

•          Expect heavy traffic around the Old City and any venue hosting a mass release, build in extra time getting anywhere that week.

•          If you do attend a sky lantern release, follow the organizers’ safety instructions closely, mass releases are coordinated specifically to manage fire risk, and informal releases outside sanctioned events carry real safety and environmental concerns.

•          Pack layers. Late November evenings in Chiang Mai can be noticeably cooler than Bangkok, especially once the sun sets.

Our take

If seeing a mass sky lantern release is on your Thailand bucket list, this is the week to build a trip around, but treat the main ticketed CAD event as something to book months, not days, ahead given how reliably it sells out. If you miss it, the broader city atmosphere during Yi Peng week is still very much worth experiencing on its own.

Frequently asked questions

• What are the exact dates for Yi Peng 2026 in Chiang Mai? The main ticketed CAD lantern release runs November 24-25, 2026, with city-wide festival activity happening around the same dates.

• Is Yi Peng the same as Loy Krathong? No, Loy Krathong is a nationwide Thai festival of floating river lanterns, while Yi Peng is a Northern Thai tradition specific to Chiang Mai involving sky lanterns. They fall around the same time of year but are culturally distinct.

• Do I need a ticket to see lanterns during Yi Peng? Only for the organized mass releases like the CAD event. General festival activity, temple displays, and krathong floating are free and happen throughout the city.