About Thingyan (Myanmar Water Festival)
Thingyan is Myanmar's New Year water festival and the most exuberant holiday of the Burmese year. Held over several days each April, it ushers in the traditional New Year with joyous, nationwide water-throwing: people line the streets with buckets, hoses and water pistols to drench one another, symbolically washing away the sins, bad luck and heat of the year that has passed. The name comes from a Sanskrit word for the sun's transit between zodiac signs, and the festival has deep roots in Buddhist and Hindu cosmology.
Beyond the soaking, Thingyan blends revelry with merit-making. Temporary stages called pandals line the roads with music and dancing, while many people visit monasteries to observe precepts, pour scented water gently over Buddha images and elders, offer alms and release fish and birds. Traditional foods such as Mont Lone Yay Baw — sweet sticky-rice balls with palm sugar — are shared, and the festival culminates in Burmese New Year's Day, a time for fresh resolutions and acts of kindness.
Thingyan falls in mid-April, traditionally around April 13 to 16, with the New Year day following. UNESCO inscribed it on its list of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2024. Because the festival is fixed close to these dates but can shift by a day, the countdown above tracks the days until the next Thingyan — add it to your own page to follow the build-up to Myanmar's great water festival.
Upcoming dates
| 2027 | Tuesday, April 13, 2027next |
| 2028 | Thursday, April 13, 2028 |
| 2029 | Friday, April 13, 2029 |
| 2030 | Saturday, April 13, 2030 |
FAQ
When is Thingyan?
Thingyan is held in mid-April, traditionally from about April 13 to 16, with the Burmese New Year day immediately after. The dates are set close to the sun's zodiac transit and can vary by a day.
Why is Thingyan celebrated?
It marks the Burmese New Year and the transit of the sun into Aries. Throwing water symbolises washing away the misfortunes and impurities of the old year so the new one can begin afresh.
How is Thingyan celebrated?
With nationwide water-throwing in the streets, music stages, dancing and feasting, alongside merit-making at monasteries — observing precepts, bathing Buddha images, offering alms and releasing fish and birds.
Is Thingyan the same as Songkran?
They are related New Year water festivals across mainland Southeast Asia, sharing the same Buddhist roots and mid-April timing, but Thingyan is Myanmar's own celebration with its distinct customs, foods and music.