Phitsanulok's Royal Cup Longboat Races Begin on the Nan River on Wednesday With Eight Classes Over Five Days
A riverside community whose fifty paddler boat has raced since 1972 has been training every evening ahead of the northern Thai city's races.
Phitsanulok's traditional longboat races for royal trophies run from 16 to 20 September 2026 on the Nan River in front of Wat Phra Si Rattana Mahathat, the temple known locally as Wat Yai, in the centre of the northern Thai city. Phitsanulok City Municipality and the Phitsanulok Provincial Administrative Organisation are staging the event.
Eight classes are on the programme, according to an event listing citing the municipality, ranging from small boats from within the province with up to 30 paddlers to seven-paddler boats intended to build local unity. The municipality confirmed the dates, course and classes at a planning meeting on 15 May 2026.
The races grew from a tradition of towing boats upriver to present robes to the Phra Phuttha Chinnarat Buddha image at Wat Yai. Phitsanulok Hotnews reported on 14 September that paddlers from the Wat Tha Rong Tawan Tok community, which leads the annual boat procession, have been training on the river at about 6pm every day.
Village head Kriangkrai Jaiyuang, 59, a former paddler and team manager, said the community's 50-paddler boat Mae Sri Taphao Thong has raced since 1972 after being bought from Wat Hua Dong in Phichit, when Phitsanulok had few boats of that size. Its paddlers still call on the boat, which villagers regard as the 'big mother', to spur them on.
The races follow the Phichit royal cup regatta earlier this month, where Khwan Trakul Nawa of Mukdahan won the 55-paddler large boat open class and prize money of 310,000 baht.