CHIANG RAI – Morning mist and cool air are back on the peaks of Doi Tung as the Mae Fah Luang Foundation under Royal Patronage, together with public and private partners, launches the 12th “Colours of Doi Tung” festival.
This year runs under the concept The Monsters’ Journey Blooming Inspiration. Visitors are invited to travel with the “Guardians of Doi Tung Forest” through tribal-patterned flower gardens, highland arts and culture, and creative community-based activities that link closely with local life.
The festival takes place from 2 December 2025 to 25 January 2026, every Saturday, Sunday, and public holiday, 08.00 to 18.00, at the Doi Tung Development Project under Royal Initiative, Mae Fah Luang district, Chiang Rai province. Entry to the main festival area is free. Regular admission fees still apply for Doi Tung Royal Villa, Mae Fah Luang Garden, and Mae Fah Luang Arboretum (Doi Chang Mub).
From Opium Fields to “People Living with the Forest”
Over the past 37 years, the Doi Tung Development Project has turned once-degraded highlands and former opium fields into a rich watershed forest. The area is now a model of development that restores nature and improves people’s lives at the same time.
Phisan Chansilp, Chiang Rai Provincial Cultural Officer, explains that Doi Tung is more than a tourist attraction. It is a “living stage” of many ethnic groups, such as Akha, Lahu, Tai Yai (Shan), Tai Lue, Lua, and Yunnan Chinese, who still keep their beliefs, rituals, and traditional festivals.
A key example is the “new rice eating” ceremony and post-harvest thanksgiving to nature, which shows the deep bond between people, community, land, and forest.
“The Chiang Rai Provincial Cultural Office works closely with ethnic networks on Doi Tung to record, preserve, and continue these traditions,” Phisan says. “We do not want them to be just performances for visitors. We want people in the community to tell their own stories.”
He adds that visitors who want deeper knowledge about the beliefs and wisdom of each group can still learn directly from local people. In his view, tourism should not be separate from its cultural roots.
“Phi To” and the “Maan Maan” Team, Forest Guardians Who Teach the Next Generation
One of the main highlights this year is the creation of the characters “Phi To” and the four “Maan Maan” guardians from Chiang Saen. These characters were developed by the Mae Fah Luang Foundation together with Mae Fah Luang University, so that stories about mountains, forests, and hill communities speak clearly to younger visitors.
Phi To is inspired by the Tai Yai performance “Ram Nok Ram To” and represents biodiversity on Doi Tung. He is like a kind forest spirit who looks after all life on the mountain.
The four “Maan Maan” characters share simple lessons about the environment and cultural playfully:
- Naka
Guardian of land, water, and air, symbol of balance between nature and culture - Malee
Voice of peace and diversity, who looks at the world through a lens of equality - Akkhi
Fire from the Chiang Saen kitchen, keeper of food wisdom and local ways of life - Sali Mueang
Protector of the heart of Chiang Saen town, always ready to welcome visitors with warmth and good wishes
These characters are not just on signs or souvenirs. They appear around Mae Fah Luang Garden in floral designs inspired by tribal textiles, photo spots, and in the activity “The Monsters’ Journey Quest”, where visitors search for the forest guardians while learning about Doi Tung in a fun way.
Tourism, 65% of Chiang Rai’s GPP, and the Role of Colours of Doi Tung
Rujtisas Rangsi, Deputy Governor of Chiang Rai, stresses that tourism and services are the main economic engines of the province. Chiang Rai’s Gross Provincial Product (GPP) is about 116,580 million baht, and around 65,000 million baht, or 65%, comes from tourism and services.
This is why the province has set a clear tourism strategy and the policy “Travel all year” or “12 months of travel”. The goal is to keep visitors coming in every season, not only in the peak months.
Activities are designed to match local lifestyles, arts, and culture, and they now reach all 18 districts and 124 local administrative organisations. These events highlight costumes, performances, daily life, and local food, and they aim to draw visitors in many ways.
He notes that the province keeps tourist sites tidy and works closely with Provincial Police to maintain safety for both people and property in all areas.
Environmental issues are a key concern, especially PM 2.5. Chiang Rai is pushing Responsible and Sustainable Tourism, with a strong focus on reducing sources of air pollution and managing waste properly at all major sites. This is to protect both the environment and public health.
During the high season, the “Colours of Doi Tung” festival is a major magnet. It helps generate extra income for ethnic communities on Doi Tung, not only through visits to Mae Fah Luang Garden and Doi Tung Royal Villa but also through cultural shows that add what he calls “happiness promotions” for visitors.
He points out that most visitors do not visit just one place. When they come to Chiang Rai, they usually travel on to other famous attractions in all 18 districts. This spreads income through a wide network of communities, homestays, hotels, and other tourism businesses.
He invites both Thai and foreign visitors to discover the “wonder” of Chiang Rai this high season. Mountain ranges, rivers, and a rich artistic and cultural heritage all reflect the province’s ethnic and cultural diversity. He believes visitors will leave with lasting impressions and real joy.
Social Enterprise in the Highlands, Where Income Returns to the Community
Prasert Trongcharoenkiet, Head of Social Enterprise Operations at the Mae Fah Luang Foundation, explains that Colours of Doi Tung plays a major part in the foundation’s social enterprise work. The core focus is to create jobs, careers, and stability for people who live in the project area.
Inside the festival, more than 35 community shops at the Tribal Market and Doi Tung Market sell local and fusion food. Popular examples include pizza with Doi Tung black pork, a product that grew out of the foundation’s support for highland farmers.
There is “Fai Dee Café”, where young people train as baristas, and stalls selling seasonal fruit and vegetables such as snow lotus, Phu Lae pineapple, perilla seeds, and rakchu (local root crops), all at fair prices.
“Doi Tung Lifestyle” shops and the Tribal Handicraft House give artisans from six ethnic groups a space to sell handwoven textiles, embroidery, jewellery, and modern craft. Many products upgrade traditional knowledge into items that fit city life, such as fabric bags made from recycled plastic yarn (upcycling) and woven cloth that blends classic motifs with new design.
“Every item sold here has a maker behind it, and most of them come from Doi Tung communities,” says Prasert. “The income does more than keep families stable. It helps parents send their children to further study, and many of those children can return one day to improve their home villages. That is the heart of social enterprise as we see it.”
A Carbon Neutral Event, Where Net Greenhouse Gas Emissions are Zero
Another strong point of the Colours of Doi Tung festival is its status as a “Carbon Neutral Event”. The aim is that net greenhouse gas emissions from the event are reduced and fully offset.
The festival uses biodegradable packaging from natural materials, cuts down and phases out single-use plastic bags, and runs a clear waste management system. The “Eco Crew” team provides a borrow-and-return container service inside the event, which sharply reduces packaging waste from food and drink.
On the education side, the “Nature Snap” exhibition shows more than 30 photos of nature taken by Doi Tung residents. An environmental booth, staffed by Young Guardian youth networks, explains how Doi Tung changed from a degraded area into a healthy watershed forest. Visitors can see how their travel choices today relate to the future state of natural resources.
Prasert says the foundation applies social enterprise principles in three key areas: economy, society, and environment. For more than 30 years, it has worked on forest conservation and land restoration, and Doi Tung now has a strong watershed forest and key cash crops like coffee and macadamia.
Art and design play a growing part in how the foundation communicates this mission. By working with Mae Fah Luang University, the team created characters like “Phi To” and “Nong Maan Maan” as symbols of a new generation of “forest guardians”. These characters help talk to visitors in a light, fun way, especially younger people, while quietly planting ideas about caring for forests and the environment.
The foundation also prepares the next generation to take over this work. It promotes basic education in local communities, runs “Fai Dee kids camps” at the Knowledge Center (KLC), and offers scholarships so students from the area can study at university. Those who finish and wish to return get the chance to work with the foundation or related development projects.
Prasert says the 12th Colours of Doi Tung festival, from 2 December 2025 to 25 January 2026, aims to give visitors of all ages a mix of happiness, fun, and useful knowledge that they can take home and use in daily life.
Protecting and Sharing the Ethnic Culture on Doi Tung
Phisan Chansilp, Chiang Rai Provincial Cultural Officer, says his office works side by side with the Mae Fah Luang Foundation to support and strengthen ethnic culture on Doi Tung.
This year, they brought the ancient “new rice eating” ceremony into the festival. It is a harvest ritual shared by Akha, Lahu, Tai Yai, and other groups on Doi Tung.
The ceremony shows gratitude to sacred forces, ancestors, and nature for providing fertile land and a good harvest. His office coordinates with ethnic networks to collect, record, and protect these traditions so they can survive and stay meaningful.
He also points to the creative way ethnic wisdom has been woven into modern art. The flower gardens are designed with patterns inspired by tribal embroidery. This blends nature in the gardens with cultural stories in the cloth, and turns them into a new shared language.
The result is not just visual beauty. It also feeds the local creative economy. Cultural value becomes attractive tourism content. Visitors get inspired by the gardens, and at the same time, they can learn more about the differences and shared wisdom of each ethnic group. They can read, attend mini talks, or simply ask ethnic community members at the event, who are happy to explain in detail.
He invites everyone to come and feel the cool winter air, enjoy colourful flowers, and experience the rich ethnic culture on Doi Tung freshly and engagingly.
The Monsters’ Journey Quest: Where Offline Fun Meets Online Sharing
For visitors who want the full experience with the Doi Tung forest guardians, this year’s “The Monsters’ Journey Quest” activity offers a playful challenge.
After buying a Happy Journey Ticket, or a ticket to the gardens and Royal Villa, participants can join the activity. They need to check in by taking photos at the “monster power” point and at the five character spots, Naka, Malee, Akkhi, Sali Mueang, and Phi To, all set among the tribal-pattern flower gardens.
Once they collect all six photos, they post them on Facebook or Instagram with public settings and add the hashtags #สีสันแห่งดอยตุงครั้งที่12 and #TheMonstersJourney.
Prizes include return air tickets Bangkok – Chiang Rai with accommodation at Doi Tung Lodge and several special souvenirs.
The activity adds fun to the visit and also turns participants into “media” who help spread the word about the festival and Chiang Rai to a wider online audience.
Chill Corners, Tasty Food, and Fun Activities
Colours of Doi Tung is known for its large cool-climate flower displays every year. A must-see area is the “Tribal Embroidery Flower Garden” at the Continuity Sculpture Lawn, where flower beds follow traditional embroidery motifs from different ethnic groups. Visitors can walk through and see how textile patterns turn into living fields of colour.
Coffee lovers can stop by Doi Tung Slowbar Café on the wooden deck in Mae Fah Luang Garden for hot drip coffee. Seasonal treats such as Choco Strawberry Slushy and soft serve ice cream in Doi Tung vanilla and green tea flavours are also on the menu.
“Royal Kitchen” dishes use ingredients from the project, with highlights like sai ua lasagne, the “Muan Ok Muan Jai” set, and grilled chicken breast with sabia sauce.
Families can spend time at the Craft Workshop zone under the “Fun Pavilion”, where children and adults create simple crafts from natural and recycled materials. Foundation staff are on hand to guide visitors.
The “Tribal Studio” offers photo sessions in full traditional costume from all six ethnic groups on Doi Tung, a special keepsake for many visitors.
Doi Tung is a Gateway to all 18 Districts of Chiang Rai
The Deputy Governor sees Doi Tung as the most recognisable symbol of Chiang Rai. Many people who visit the province plan a trip to Doi Tung Royal Villa and Mae Fah Luang Garden as a key part of their journey.
Holding the Colours of Doi Tung festival during the high season in December and January helps turn Doi Tung into a starting point for trips to other places.
Many visitors stay overnight in the city or nearby, then continue to Doi Mae Salong, Wat Rong Khun, Wat Rong Suea Ten, the Golden Triangle, and community-based routes in other districts. Hotels, homestays, restaurants, and tour services all benefit from this flow.
The festival, therefore, helps the whole province. It links city and mountain, urban businesses and ethnic communities, older generations and younger ones, inside one shared tourism network.
To make travel easier, the 12th Colours of Doi Tung festival offers a “Happy Journey Package” worth 734 baht, on sale for just 399 baht. The package combines admission to key sites, souvenirs, and selected activities in the project. Separate entry to each site is 90 baht per person.
There is a 50% discount for senior citizens, school students, university students (up to bachelor’s level), people with disabilities, and members of all faiths. Children under 120 centimetres in height can enter free of charge.
On-site services include golf carts, shuttle transport within the grounds, a first-aid station, and wheelchairs for elderly visitors or those with mobility needs. The aim is to make Doi Tung accessible and comfortable for everyone.
A Festival that Shows What Practical Sustainability Looks Like
Looking at the whole picture, the 12th Colours of Doi Tung is not just a winter flower fair. It is a live example of how sustainable development can be put into daily practice.
The festival uses familiar cartoon characters to talk about forests and climate, designs waste systems that cut plastic use, supports income for local people through social enterprise, and helps expand Chiang Rai’s tourism economy in a way that respects the environment.
At the same time, it offers a meeting point where ethnic communities, local businesses, government agencies, and private partners can work together on the same mountain, with one shared goal: balanced living between people and the forest.
For anyone seeking natural beauty, cultural stories, and a clear example of sustainable tourism this winter, “Colours of Doi Tung 12 – The Monsters’ Journey, Blooming Inspiration” is a destination that offers far more than pretty photos. It can also spark new ideas about how we live and travel in our own daily lives.
Source: Nakorn Chiang Rai
