Ibrahim Jabbari
The ancient northern Thai city of Chiang Mai plays host to the biggest Songkran celebrations of all. While the festival takes place throughout the rest of Thailand over one weekend, Chiang Mai stretches it out for a week. Follow the parade around the tree-lined streets of the Old Town – which is bordered by a misty, square-shaped moat – and join the locals pouring jasmine-scented water on Buddhist shrines. You can build sand pagodas on the streets, watch dance performances and taste Thai street food from stalls along the Urban Culture Street. You can also tap into a rowdier side to the revelry, joining people lowering buckets on strings into the moat and filling them up to hurl at passers-by, or utilising supplies from tuk-tuks loaded with barrels of water.
