At water splashing festival (Photo: VNA) Vientiane (VNA) – People across Laos on April 14 organised activities to celebrate the traditional New Year festival, also known as Bunpimay or Bun Hout Nam (water splashing festival) according to the Buddhist calendar.
In the former royal capital of Luang Prabang, crowds of domestic and foreign tourists flocked to this most attractive tourist destination in Laos. Starting from the early afternoon, tens of thousands of people in colorful clothes gathered in the old town area to join in the water splashing festival, one of the most enjoyable and exciting among a series of events traditionally held during the New Year celebrations of Lao ethnic groups.
On the streets, amid lively music, groups of people happily danced, sang, and splashed water all over each other, with laughter and joy. Although everyone was soaked, they all felt happy because of the belief that the wetter you get, the more luck you would have.
This year's Bunpimay gets underway from April 14-16. In order to revive tourism industry which has been severely affected by COVID-19 pandemic, Luang Prabang authorities have held a series of activities to attract tourists, lasting from April 11 to April 20.
On April 15, the Nang Sangkhane (Miss Lao New Year) procession, one of the activities that attracts many Lao people and tourists during New Year celebrations, will be also held.
This year, Laos targets drawing 1.4 million foreign tourists./.
