In Akha villages throughout the district, males are preparing the support saplings for their swings. They will then fashion the seat from stones and vine before attaching it to the frame with hand-twisted rope.
The village elders take the first swings and then youngsters are followed by the younger females. The festival is always held at the end of August and legend has it that the sound of attractive girls swinging through the air prior to the harvest means the crops will be plentiful.
The swing ceremonies are not the only festival activity as there is singing and dancing around the campfire in the evening. Mae Fah Luang is on the main route linking Chiang Rai and Mae Sai and 12GO ASIA provides a convenient ticketing service for buses to these two towns.
North Thailand Akha hilltribes get ready for Swing Festival
News in Asia
Akha hilltribes in the Mae Fah Luang area of Northern Thailand are today preparing for their annual Swing Ceremony. The two-day celebration of the tribe’s heritage begins on Saturday and tourists wishing to witness the celebration are invited to the district’s Phra Siam Thewathiraj Park.