Southeast Asia Information Port (www.dnyxxg.com) – To further develop Chiang Mai's green tourism demonstration project, improve the local tourism supply chain, and solidify Chiang Mai's position as a global green tourism destination, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) will hold the "2026 Chiang Mai Green Guide Festival" at Chiang Mai Railway Park from August 28th to 30th. This three-day event will comprehensively interpret the concept of sustainable tourism development through diverse forms such as local specialty product exhibitions, gourmet food experiences, business cooperation matchmaking, folk cultural performances, and community interactive experiences, minimizing the event's impact on the ecological environment through a green event management model.
Nat Krutasut, Deputy Director of Tourism Products and Business at the Tourism Authority of Thailand, has high hopes for this event. He stated that the 2026 Chiang Mai Green Guide Festival achieves a deep integration of sustainable development concepts and a holistic tourism experience. The event will combine Chiang Mai's unique creative culture, local wisdom, distinctive cuisine, and wellness concepts with a responsible business operation model and a mechanism for full community participation, creating a high-quality green tourism experience for tourists and generating new value for the local community, further enhancing Chiang Mai's core competitiveness in the global green tourism field. This is also a core development direction of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, promoting high-quality growth in Thailand's tourism industry through quality upgrades, deeper public participation, and quantifiable environmental responsibility.
This festival features six carefully designed themed exhibition areas, showcasing Chiang Mai's achievements and practices in sustainable tourism development from six dimensions: tourism products, local creativity, specialty cuisine, business exchange, community participation, and cultural experiences.
The Sustainable Development Exhibition Area highlights authoritative industry standards and innovative development achievements from organizations such as STG STAR and CF-Hotels, while also hosting responsible tourism demonstrations and themed workshops to promote green tourism development models. The Sustainable Local Wisdom Exhibition Area focuses on Chiang Mai's creative city characteristics, showcasing various local specialty products and services centered on traditional crafts, contemporary design, and wellness concepts, highlighting local customs and community development wisdom. The Sustainable Food Exhibition Area brings together over 35 local Chiang Mai restaurant brands, with local chefs demonstrating the "farm-to-table" concept of authentic cuisine, while also offering consumer benefits: visitors who spend 500 baht or more on-site can participate in a free lucky draw.
The Sustainable Business Exchange Conference bridges the gap between government and businesses, universities and enterprises, and merchants, linking green tourism enterprises with local communities to promote industry experience exchange, resource sharing, and channel co-construction, continuously exploring new opportunities for sustainable tourism development. Community and sustainable development activities feature a fun "Green Mission" check-in activity, where visitors can collect stamps to redeem exclusive benefits, learning about sustainable and environmentally friendly practices in everyday travel through an immersive experience.
The cultural performance section is vibrant, with two daily performances showcasing classic Chiang Mai intangible cultural heritage programs such as the Bo Sang Umbrella Dance, Wind Dance, Saba Drum Dance, Tea Picking Dance, and Feng Ou Dance. Numerous local musicians and bands will also perform, with Serious Bacon, Khian Khai, and Vanich performing on August 28th; T_047 and Mirrr performing on August 29th; and Earth Patravee, Moving, and Cut headlining on August 30th, creating a green audio-visual feast that combines cultural depth with trendy energy.
Even before the festival's opening, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) held a forum on August 21st themed "Green Guide, New Concept" to generate buzz and promote the event. The forum featured industry leaders including TAT officials, Phiphat Aphirakthanakorn, founder of the ECOLIFE platform and a sustainability expert, and Professor Seth Sampattagul, Chairman of the LCA Talent Center. Discussions focused on Chiang Mai's core resources, such as natural resources, arts and culture, creative design, and wellness tourism, exploring new paths for localized, sustainable, and high-quality tourism development.
The 2026 Chiang Mai Green Guide Festival adheres to the core principles of low-carbon, environmentally friendly, and sustainable development, and has successfully obtained official carbon neutrality certification from the Greenhouse Gas Management Organization of Thailand. The entire event implements green initiatives such as waste sorting, plastic reduction and bans, efficient resource utilization, and carbon footprint management, with total carbon emissions expected to be only 350 tons, a significant 50% reduction compared to the previous event, demonstrating remarkable success in green event organization. To facilitate travel for residents and tourists, two electric shuttle bus routes will be launched during the event, covering two major commuter routes: Sampakoi Market to the Railway Park and Karang to the Railway Park, fully embodying the concept of green travel.
According to the Tourism Authority of Thailand's estimates, this three-day festival will attract no fewer than 15,000 domestic and international tourists, with on-site spending expected to exceed 20 million baht. It is also projected to boost tourism revenue across Chiang Mai by over 100 million baht, effectively revitalizing the local cultural and tourism consumption market.
It is understood that destination prototype development is a core initiative of the Tourism Authority of Thailand's Sustainable Tourism Development Framework (STGs). In 2025, Thailand has already launched the Krabi Green Tourism Prototype Project, establishing a platform for connecting sustainable tourism products, business services, and tourist experiences through the Krabi Green Guide Festival, thereby improving local tourism standards, activating community participation, and optimizing the tourism supply chain. In 2026, Thailand will implement this successful model in Chiang Mai, linking government agencies, private enterprises, and local communities to empower tourism businesses to transform and upgrade, promote industry alignment with sustainable development standards, and contribute to the balanced, long-term, and green development of Thailand's tourism industry chain. (End)
