Thai public holidays 2027, Buddhist year 2570 and animal

What are the public holidays in Thailand in 2027?

The table below is the Bank of Thailand’s official 2027 list (notification 37/2569, published in the Royal Gazette on 25 August 2026). Banks and most offices close on these days. When a holiday falls on a weekend, the day off moves to the next working day, shown in the last column. Government offices also close on a couple of extra days, listed under the table.

Extra days for government offices (not banks):

• Khao Phansa (วันเข้าพรรษา, wan khao phan-saa), the start of the monks’ rains retreat, on Monday 19 July. In 2027 it falls on the same Monday as the Asahna Bucha substitute day.
• The Royal Ploughing Ceremony in May. The 2027 date had not been announced when we checked.
• Labour Day is a bank and private-sector holiday. Time Out reports that government offices stay open on Monday 3 May.

Private employers set their own list (many follow the bank calendar), so check with your cousin’s workplace before you count on a day off.

Which Thai holidays move every year?

The Buddhist days follow the moon, so their dates change every year:

• Makha Bucha, Visakha Bucha and Asahna Bucha are full-moon temple days. Khao Phansa is the day after Asahna Bucha. What each one means, and what families do at the temple, is in our guide to Buddhist holy days in 2027.
• The Royal Ploughing Ceremony is set each year.
• Loy Krathong (วันลอยกระทง, wan loi gra-thong) is a full-moon night, usually in November. It is a big family night out, but not a day off.

Fixed dates (New Year, Chakri Day, Songkran, the royal birthdays, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Constitution Day) stay the same each year. Only their substitute days move.

Big days that are not national days off in 2027:

• Children’s Day (วันเด็ก, wan dek): the second Saturday of January, so 9 January 2027. See what happens on Thai Children’s Day.
• Chinese New Year (ตรุษจีน, trut jiin): Saturday 6 February 2027. Many Thai Chinese families celebrate at home and at the shrine. Banks in five southern provinces get it as a holiday only when it falls on a weekday, so not in 2027. See how Thai-Chinese families keep Chinese New Year.

What year is it in Thailand?

Thailand counts years in the Buddhist Era, written พ.ศ. (phor sor). It runs 543 years ahead of the Western calendar:

To convert, add 543 (2027 + 543 = 2570). To go back, subtract 543. Since 1941 the Thai year number changes on 1 January, the same day as yours.

You’ll see พ.ศ. years on Thai birth certificates, ID cards, receipts, school papers and your family’s documents. If yai says someone was born in “2533”, that’s 1990.

What’s the Thai year animal for 2027?

2027 is ปีมะแม (pii ma-mae), the year of the goat (แพะ, phae). Thailand uses the same twelve animals as the Chinese zodiac, with its own names for the years.

When does the animal year change? It depends who you ask. In the traditional Thai calendar the year takes the next animal on 13 April, at Songkran. Thai Chinese families may switch at Chinese New Year instead. Most people just use the calendar year. So if your birthday falls between January and mid-April, yai may give you the animal before, and you’re both right.

How do you say your birth year the Thai way?

Thai people usually say a birth year in พ.ศ. Take a 1995 birthday: add 543 and you get 2538.

• The full way: เกิดปีสองพันห้าร้อยสามสิบแปด (gert pii sorng phan haa roi saam sip paet), “born in the year 2538”.
• The everyday way, the last two digits: ปีสามสิบแปด (pii saam sip paet), “year 38”.

The Reply Thai app has a small Thai-year card that works this out for your own birth year and animal.

When should you plan a trip home in 2027?

The Bank of Thailand list gives eight long weekends of three days or more:

1. Fri 1 to Sun 3 January (New Year)
2. Sat 20 to Mon 22 February (Makha Bucha)
3. Sat 1 to Tue 4 May (Labour Day and Coronation Day)
4. Sat 17 to Mon 19 July (Asahna Bucha and Khao Phansa)
5. Sat 23 to Mon 25 October (Chulalongkorn Day)
6. Sat 4 to Mon 6 December (Father’s Day)
7. Fri 10 to Sun 12 December (Constitution Day)
8. Fri 31 December to Sun 2 January 2028 (New Year)

Songkran is the big one for family. In 2027 it runs Tuesday to Thursday, so two days of leave (Monday 12 and Friday 16 April) give you nine days in a row. Flights and buses out of Bangkok fill up early for Songkran, and everyone else’s family is travelling too.

If you visit on your non-Thai passport, check your entry rules before you book. Our Thai passport guide covers the 30-day visa-free stay from 15 September 2026, and our guide to holding Thai and another citizenship covers what having two nationalities means.

สุขสันต์วันสงกรานต์

suk-san wan song-graan

สุขสันต์วันสงกรานต์ครับ

suk-san wan song-graan khrap

สุขสันต์วันสงกรานต์ค่ะ

suk-san wan song-graan kha

Who is speaking?

ครับ said by a manค่ะ said by a woman

Draft: waiting for a native speaker’s review.

Practise your Songkran wishes in Reply Thai, coming soon to iPhone.

How sure are these dates?

• Official: the bank holiday list above (Bank of Thailand notification 37/2569).
• Not yet announced when we checked: the 2027 Royal Ploughing Ceremony date, any extra special holidays the cabinet may add, and the exact Loy Krathong night.

We re-check this page every month and update the “Last checked” date at the top.

Thai words on this page are a draft until a native speaker has reviewed them.