New Year's Day: Laos celebrates the Christian new year with as much fun as anywhere else in the world despite being an overwhelmingly Buddhist society.

Boun Pha Wet: Jataka, a reincarnation of the Buddha as the Lao prince Vestsantara, is honoured in this festival at one of the capital’s main temples. Many men join the monkhood during this auspicious occasion.

Vietnamese Tet and Chinese New Year: dragon parades, fireworks and all-night partying fill Chinatown during the Chinese and Vietnamese new year celebrations in the capital.

Magha Puja: in commemoration of a sermon made by the Buddha to 1,250 monks in ancient times, the temples of Vientiane are lit up with candles as monks chant traditional prayers.

Boun Khoun Khao: Laos’ traditional harvest festival pays tribute to the spirits of the land. Many city dwellers return to their villages for this big family gathering.

Lao New Year (Pi Mai): frivolous water fights and serious partying consume the capital for several days during traditional new year celebrations.

Rocket Festival: to bring back the seasonal rains, bamboo rockets are fired into the skies all across the country, accompanied by music, dancing, drinking and cultural performances.

Visa Bochea Day: the Buddha’s birthday is a special time for both Buddhist citizens and monks to make merit at their favourite temple.

Buddhist Lent: this rather serious festival marks the annual event when monks retreat into their temples for three months of meditation.

Ulambana: also known as Ancestor Day, this fascinating 15-day event sees families make daily offerings of food and goods to relieve the suffering of ghosts in the hope they’ll go away.

Ok Pansa Festival: to mark the end of Buddhist Lent, teams of rowers bring their colourful boats to the banks of the Mekong for a day of racing and partying.

Hmong New Year: the Hmong are one of the largest ethnic groups in Laos, and a visit to one of their villages during this period is a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

That Luang Festival: Vientiane’s biggest festival involves a massive temporary market, live music, dancing, games and drinking at the capital’s most important stupa, That Luang.