Every krathong shop in Thailand sells ready-made floats for a few baht, but knowing how to make a krathong yourself turns the festival from something you watch into something you actually built with your hands.
This guide walks through the traditional method step by step, plus which materials are genuinely eco-friendly and which ones Thai officials now warn against.
What You Need to Make a Krathong
Gather these before you start. Everything here is sold at most Thai markets in the weeks before the festival, and several items work as substitutes if you are making a krathong outside Thailand.
- A slice of banana tree trunk, cut about 2 inches thick, for the base
- Fresh banana leaves, enough for the base cover and folded petals
- Flowers, such as marigolds, orchids, or a small lotus bloom
- One candle
- Three incense sticks
- Pins or short bamboo skewers to hold the leaves in place
- Scissors
Building a Traditional Krathong Step by Step
The full process takes most people 20 to 30 minutes once they know the folding technique. Follow these four steps in order.
Step 1: Prepare the Base
Cut the banana trunk into a round slice about 2 inches thick. This piece floats the entire krathong, so pick one that sits flat and feels solid, without soft or rotting spots.
Cover the top and sides with banana leaves cut to fit, tucking the edges under so the trunk never touches the water directly. Skipping this step is the top reason krathongs sink early, since an uncovered base soaks up water fast.
Step 2: Fold the Banana Leaf Petals
This step gives a krathong its signature lotus shape.
- Cut a banana leaf into strips roughly 2 to 3 inches wide.
- Hold one strip lengthwise and fold the top corner down to form a triangle, the same motion as starting a paper airplane.
- Fold the triangle in half again, creating a long, narrow point.
- Trim the loose ends at the bottom so the strip holds its shape.
- Pin or skewer the folded strip upright along the edge of the base, pointed end facing out.
Repeat this fold 15 to 20 times, spacing the petals evenly around the base until they form a full ring.
Step 3: Add Flowers, Candle, and Incense
Fill the space inside the ring of leaf petals with flowers, layering colors if you want a fuller look. Push the candle into the center first, since it needs the most stable footing, then add the three incense sticks beside it.
Press each item firmly into the banana trunk so nothing shifts once the krathong touches the water.
Step 4: Add the Personal Touch
Many Thais add a few small, symbolic items before the krathong is finished. A coin serves as an offering to the water spirits, and a clipping of hair or a fingernail represents releasing a part of yourself along with the year’s bad luck.
These additions are optional. Plenty of people, Thai and visitor alike, skip them and float a krathong with just flowers, a candle, and incense. For the full story behind these traditions, this guide to the history and meaning of Loy Krathong covers it in detail.
Choosing Eco-Friendly Krathong Materials
Not every material sold as “green” actually is. Thai environmental officials have flagged this problem directly in recent years, and it changes what you should reach for.
Why Bread Isn’t Actually Eco-Friendly
Bread and ice cream cone krathongs are popular with kids because they double as fish food, and many travel guides still call them the eco-friendly choice. Bangkok’s environment department and the Thailand Environment Institute disagree.
Bread krathongs often outnumber the fish that are supposed to eat them, so the leftover bread rots and lowers water quality instead of helping it. In one recent year, Bangkok collected more than 500,000 krathongs from its waterways, and officials specifically flagged bread as a material needing cleanup, just like plastic.
Materials Officials Actually Recommend
Banana leaf remains the top recommendation, since it breaks down naturally and can be composted into fertilizer afterward. An ice krathong, made by freezing water with flowers inside a bowl, is another strong option, since it dissolves completely and leaves nothing behind.
Skip Styrofoam entirely. It does not decompose, and cities across Thailand now count and report Styrofoam krathongs separately because of the damage they cause.
No Banana Leaves? Alternatives That Work
If you are making a krathong outside Thailand and cannot find banana leaves, a few substitutes work reasonably well:
- A slice of real bread as the base, understanding it needs to be collected afterward rather than left in the water
- A small block of ice with flowers frozen inside, which melts away completely
- Sturdy paper or card, folded using the same petal technique, best for decoration rather than actual floating
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Skipping the banana leaf cover on the base, which causes the trunk to soak up water and sink early
- Overloading the krathong with heavy decorations, which unbalances it on the water
- Using too many pins without trimming them, leaving sharp points exposed
- Making more than one krathong per person. Officials now recommend one krathong per family to reduce the total waste each river has to absorb
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the easiest way to make a krathong?
Cover a banana trunk slice with banana leaves, pin a ring of folded leaf petals around the edge, then add flowers, a candle, and incense in the center. This basic version takes most people 20 to 30 minutes.
Is bread actually a good eco-friendly krathong material?
Not according to Thai environmental officials. Bread krathongs often go uneaten by fish and end up rotting in the water, lowering water quality. Banana leaf remains the material officials recommend as genuinely biodegradable.
Can I make a krathong without banana leaves?
Yes. Bread, ice with frozen flowers, or sturdy paper can substitute for banana leaf, though each has trade-offs. Ice is the cleanest option since it leaves nothing behind once it melts.
How many krathongs should one person make?
Thai environmental departments now recommend one krathong per family rather than one per person, to reduce the total number collected from rivers and canals after the festival.
Conclusion
Making a krathong by hand takes about half an hour and a handful of natural materials, and it turns Loy Krathong from a festival you watch into one you actually take part in. Start with a banana leaf base if you can find the materials, skip bread and Styrofoam, and keep your krathong to one per family this year.
Planning your trip to Northern Thailand for the festival? Check the difference between Loy Krathong and Yi Peng before you go, since the two festivals follow different rules for where and how you can celebrate.
