What's on in Luang Namtha, Laos through the year

Busy — school holidays in 6 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather

• Festival

  Hill-tribe New Year celebrations

  1–31 Jan · usuallyMajor festival

  After the rice harvest the Akha, Lahu, Hmong, Yao and Tai Neua villages around Namtha hold their own new year feasts, with games, costume and dancing. Village dates vary, so trekking guides are the best way in. Source ↗

Still on: Nam Ha trekking season (15 Oct – 31 Mar (usually))

Busy — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather

Nothing new starts in February.

Still on: Nam Ha trekking season (15 Oct – 31 Mar (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

• Hazard

  Burning season haze

  1 Mar – 25 Apr · usuallySmoke season

  Northern Laos burns its fields and hillsides before the rains and this valley holds the smoke. The Nam Ha ridges vanish and the treks keep running with nothing to see from the top. Source ↗

Still on: Nam Ha trekking season (15 Oct – 31 Mar (usually))

Busy — Pi Mai, Lao New Year, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Holiday

  Pi Mai, Lao New Year

  13–17 AprWater-festival New YearClosures

  Three days of water thrown at everyone on the main road, with offices, banks and the trekking agencies closed through it. The buses to Huay Xai and Nong Khiaw thin out to almost nothing. Source ↗

Still on: Burning season haze (1 Mar – 25 Apr (usually))

Quiet — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, one of its worst months for weather

• Festival

  Boun Bang Fai rocket festival

  1 May – 10 Jun · usuallyMajor festival

  Villages launch homemade bamboo rockets to call the rains, with dancing, music and processions. Dates vary from village to village, so ask in town which weekend is coming. Source ↗

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

• Hazard

  Rainy-season mud and landslides

  1 Jun – 30 Sep · usuallyLandslide season

  Nam Ha treks still run, but trails turn to slick mud with leeches, and guides call off days they judge unsafe. Landslides also cut the mountain roads, so buses run late or not at all. Source ↗

Still on: Boun Bang Fai rocket festival (1 May – 10 Jun (usually))

Quiet — school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it, one of its worst months for weather

• Festival

  Boun Khao Phansa

  29 JulReligious feast

  The full moon that opens Buddhist Lent: morning alms and offerings at the temples and evening ceremonies with chanting monks. Weddings are traditionally put off for the three months that follow. Source ↗

Still on: Rainy-season mud and landslides (1 Jun – 30 Sep (usually))

Quiet — school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it, one of its worst months for weather

• Festival

  Boun Khao Padap Din

  11 SepReligious feast

  A day for the dead in mid-rainy season: families prepare parcels of rice and food and leave them outside homes and around the temples for wandering spirits, then bring offerings to the monks. Source ↗

Still on: Rainy-season mud and landslides (1 Jun – 30 Sep (usually)), Boun Khao Phansa (29 Jul)

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in September.

Still on: Rainy-season mud and landslides (1 Jun – 30 Sep (usually)), Boun Khao Padap Din (11 Sep)

Busy — Boun Souang Heua boat racing, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Festival

  Boun Souang Heua boat racing

  1 Oct – 10 Nov · usuallyMajor festivalCrowded

  Long boats race on the river at the end of Buddhist Lent, around the full moon of the eleventh lunar month, with a fair on the banks. The date moves with the lunar calendar. Source ↗

• Season

  Nam Ha trekking season

  15 Oct – 31 Mar · usuallyTrail season

  The months the two- and three-day walks into the protected area are dry underfoot and the village homestays take bookings. Agencies on the main street fill a group most mornings in season.

Busy — Boun Souang Heua boat racing

Nothing new starts in November.

Still on: Boun Souang Heua boat racing (1 Oct – 10 Nov (usually)), Nam Ha trekking season (15 Oct – 31 Mar (usually))

Busy — school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather

Nothing new starts in December.

Still on: Nam Ha trekking season (15 Oct – 31 Mar (usually))