Is Thailand on your travel schedule next year, Road Trips Gardeners?

The Chiang Mai Flower Festival takes place February 1 through 3, 2019, in the town known as the “rose of the north”. Look for the Damask Rose, a variety found only in Chiang Mai, plus lots of yellow and white chrysanthemums.

Celebrating the end of the “cool season” in this part of Southeast Asia, it’s been running for more than 40 years. A highlight is the Flower Festival Parade on February 2, 2019.

The focus of the festival is the public garden of Suan Buak Haad in the southwest corner of Chiang Mai’s old city. The road next to the moat all around the park is closed to traffic, and vendors of plants, flowers, orchids, and garden decorations set up their stalls there. There are also displays by landscape specialists, featuring waterfalls, patios, and all sorts of garden decoration. There are stands representing gardens from neighboring countries, and stands selling local products.