He carried on by saying local district chiefs in the northern Thai province had the final say so on whether the lanterns could be sold at temples and other locations. The governor continued with the note that the balloons should only be made from natural products, be a maximum of 1.4 metres high and have burners with eight-minute fuses.
Due to the ongoing period of mourning for King Bhumibol Adulyadej, other traditional Loy Krathong activities for 2016 have also been toned down. A Chiang Mai city council spokesperson says the customary parades will be going ahead, but without their beauty queens and beauty pageants.
People coming to town for the festival will still be able to launch loy krathong water craft in the Ping River and on the city moat. Tickets for travel from Bangkok to Sukhothai and Chiang Mai are selling out fast at present and 12GO ASIA advises pre-booking now.
Chiang Mai gives green light to release of Loy Krathong balloons
News in Asia
Provincial authorities in Chiang Mai say the launch of sky lanterns for Loy Krathong is being allowed, but with a few restrictions. Governor Pawin Chamniprasart says the launch of the balloons is limited to the hours of 19:00 to 01:00 this evening and tomorrow evening.