Thai Children's Day 2027: Saturday 9 January

If you grew up partly in Thailand, Children’s Day might be a fuzzy memory of queues, snacks and somewhere you were suddenly allowed to go. If your kids are growing up abroad, it’s a small, easy reason to make a Saturday in January a bit Thai.

When is Thai Children’s Day 2027?

Saturday 9 January 2027. Children’s Day, วันเด็ก (wan dek), is always the second Saturday of January. In 2027, 1 January is a Friday, so the Saturdays are the 2nd and the 9th, and the 9th is the one.

Is Children’s Day a day off in Thailand?

No. Wikipedia’s overview of Thai holidays lists it as a national observance, and observances are not days off. It isn’t on the Bank of Thailand’s 2027 holiday list either. Since it’s always a Saturday, most families are free anyway. For the actual days off, see our Thai public holidays 2027 page.

What happens on Children’s Day in Thailand?

Places that are normally closed to kids open their doors. Coverage of the 2026 day gives a good picture:

• Government House in Bangkok opened from early morning, with performances, contests, games, workshops, food for kids, and mobile dental checks, according to Thairath. Thai PBS World reported families queueing from early morning, and a one-year-old was the first to sit in the Prime Minister’s chair.
• Military sites join in. Thai PBS World reported an air display by the Royal Thai Air Force at Don Mueang, with about 100,000 people signed up in advance, and military dog demonstrations at the Royal Thai Army Headquarters.
• Government offices, schools and organisations across the country run their own activities for kids, in Bangkok and in the provinces.

Programmes change every year, so if you’re in Thailand that weekend, check the venue’s own announcement a few days before.

What is the Children’s Day motto?

Every year the Prime Minister gives children a short motto: one line that gets recited at events and printed in the news.

• 2026: Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul’s motto, announced on 16 December 2025, is translated by Thairath as “Love Thailand, Care for the World.”
• 2027: not out yet. In recent years it has been announced in December, so look for it in Thai news then.

The tradition is old. The first motto came from Field Marshal Plaek Phibunsongkhram, and Thai PBS World translates it as “Conduct yourself in a way that benefits others and the community.”

Where did Thai Children’s Day come from?

The first Children’s Day was held on 3 October 1955, the first Monday of October, after a suggestion from a United Nations child-welfare representative, PPTV reports. October turned out to be a poor fit: it’s rainy season, and Monday was a working day, so parents couldn’t take their kids. On 5 February 1965 the Cabinet moved it to the second Saturday of January. The Cabinet’s change meant there was no Children’s Day in 1965; the first January celebration was in 1966, PPTV reports, and the second-Saturday rule has held since.

How can we mark Children’s Day abroad?

Small and warm is plenty. Nobody is grading this.

• Call Yai with the kids. A short video call to ยาย (yaai) on Saturday 9 January is the easiest version. If you’re nervous about the call, our video call with Yai phrases walk through it from hello to goodbye.
• Ask the grown-ups what they did. Mum, dad or Yai may well remember their own Children’s Days. It’s a lovely question for a call.
• Look up the new motto together when it comes out, and talk about what it means.
• Give the kids a Thai “well done”. Children’s Day is a good excuse to say it on purpose.

เก่งมากลูก

geng maak luuk

Draft: waiting for a native speaker’s review.

พ่อภูมิใจในตัวหนูนะ

phor phuum jai nai tua nuu na

พ่อภูมิใจในตัวหนูนะ

phor phuum jai nai tua nuu na

แม่ภูมิใจในตัวหนูนะ

mae phuum jai nai tua nuu na

Who is speaking?

ครับ said by a manค่ะ said by a woman

Draft: waiting for a native speaker’s review.

• End the day in Thai. Even one line at bedtime counts.

ฝันดีนะลูก

fan dii na luuk

Draft: waiting for a native speaker’s review.

If you’re thinking about the longer road, our guides to raising bilingual Thai kids and whether your kid should go to Thai school are good next reads.

Practise the kids’ lines first

The Thai with my kids moment in Reply Thai has short lines like these, from praise to goodnight, practised as replies so they come out naturally on the day.

Reply Thai for iPhoneComing soon

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