Date in 2008 |
Festival |
Remarks |
| January 1 | New Year's Day | Although an official holiday, not widely celebrated in Cambodia, only by expats and tourists. |
| January 7 | Liberation Day | Mixed feelings on this day as it marks the Vietnamese invasion, which ended the Khmer Rouge regime. But a lot of Cambodians feel the Vietnamese later occupied their country. |
| January 21 | Meak Bochea | Death of Buddha |
| February 7-8-9 | Chinese New Year, the year of the Rat. |
This is the New Year of both the Chinese and Vietnamese lunar calendar. NOT an official holiday, but widely celebrated in Cambodia. Almost all shops are closed. |
| March 8 | International Women's Day | Celebrated with marches, gatherings and cultural events |
| April 13-14-15 | Khmer New Year |
Celebrated for 3 days after the end of the harvest to mark the turn of the year according to the Buddhist lunar calendar. Every home is decorated, shrines are filled with food and traditional games performed. Best place to watch or take part: around Wat Phnom in Phnom Penh. |
| May 1 | Labour Day | Better Factories |
| May 13-14-15 | King Sihamoni's birthday | No festivities, only evening fireworks on the river front in Phnom Penh. |
| May 19 | Visakha Bochea |
Birth of Buddha |
| May 23 | Bonn Chrott Preah Nongkoal |
Royal Ploughing Ceremony. This is celebrated to alert the nation of the commencement of the rainy season and to ready farmers for the ploughing period. Cows are given a variety of crops to eat. Based on the choices of crops eaten, predictions are made for the coming year's harvest. |
| June 1 | International Childrens' Day | See pictures of the celebration in 2005 |
| June 18 | King's Mother Birthday, Norodom Monineath Sihanouk | No festivities |
| September 24 | Constitution Day | Constitution of Cambodia |
| September 28-29-30 | Bonn Pchum Ben |
A colourful religious festival blessing the souls of ancestors, relatives and friends alike who have passed away. Household members attend Buddhist temples.Colourful offerings in the pagodas. |
| October 29 | King Sihamoni Coronation Day | No festivities, only evening fireworks on the river front in Phnom Penh. |
| October 31 | King's Father Birthday, Norodom Sihanouk | No festivities, only evening fireworks on the river front in Phnom Penh. |
| November 9 | Independence Day (1953) | Celebrated with a ceremony early morning at the Independence Monument, usually with the King attending. Fireworks at night on the river front. In 2008 this will no doubt be the start of the water festival celebrations which start two days later. |
| November 11-12-13 | Water Festival |
Marks the reversing flow of Tonle Sap River and also ushers in the fishing season. The highlight of the event, are the boat races that are held over three days. When night falls, fireworks light the sky and a lighted flotilla of boats sail aloft for good luck. People from all walks of life gather on the bank of the Tonle Sap for several days and nights. The population of Phnom Penh doubles during this festival. Colourful, very busy. |
| December 10 | Human Rights Day | Human Rights Watch |
“We also enjoyed the cooking class organised by this restaurant.”
(Willem en Christel Foppen, Netherlands)
(Willem en Christel Foppen, Netherlands)
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Here you'll find the 2008 dates of official public holidays, religious ceremonies and other festivals in Cambodia. Holidays falling on a Saturday or a Sunday are taken on the following Monday.
Plus some links to online picture albums of Cambodian festivals and more in-depth information on the celebrations mentioned, like the Water Festival and Khmer New Year.