Sansiri Supports Phuket as Thailand MICE City for 2026 Vegetarian Festival

Sansiri Public Company Limited, in collaboration with Siam Commercial Bank Public Company Limited, has officially announced a major partnership to support the 2026 Phuket Vegetarian Festival. This support aims to elevate the local cultural heritage, which boasts a history of over 200 years, into a world-class festival, with the target of generating over 5,700 million baht for the local economy. This major merit-making event will be grandly held at various shrines across Phuket Island from 10 to 18 October 2026, reinforcing Phuket's outstanding image as a primary destination for cultural tourism and international festivals.

Elevating Phuket into a World-Class Festival City

Organising the Jia Chai or Vegetarian Festival this time marks the continuation of a collaboration between major organisations for the 14th consecutive year, under the core concept of continuing goodness and sustainable growth, or Inclusive Growth. This approach fully aligns with driving Thailand's MICE industry. The festival can attract over 650,000 Thai and international travellers annually, and creates up to 4,500 jobs for locals within just nine days of the event. Furthermore, it reinforces success following Phuket receiving the world's highest honorary award, the Grand Pinnacle Award, from the IFEA, which guarantees its potential in organising regional and international events.

Collaborating with Local Brands for the Community

Besides inviting the public to make merit, observe precepts and abstain from meat, the 2026 event also stands out as a Green Festival model, which prioritises environmental conservation, campaigns to reduce carbon emissions, and seriously promotes the consumption of healthy plant-based food. Sansiri has opened up a space connecting social dimensions by bringing staff, Siam Commercial Bank customers, and residents from 23 projects together to clean six major shrines: Sam Ong Hu Shrine Cherngtalay, Sam Kong Shrine, Bang Neow Shrine, Bang Khu Sam Kuan Tong Shrine, Jui Tui Tao Bo Keng Shrine, and Kathu Shrine. These volunteer activities were supported with special vegan drinks from BEANS Coffee Roaster to help replenish the physical and mental energy of all volunteers throughout the activities.

As for returning income to the local community under the circular economy model, the organisers have partnered with YAYEE, a local Phuket clothing brand, to jointly produce scented sachets under the name Scent of Legacy to distribute as gifts to event attendees. These scented sachets are meticulously sewn from leftover batik fabric scraps, which represents a true implementation of Circular Economy principles, relying on the labour and sewing skills of female inmates as well as elderly groups in the area. All of these operations reflect a commitment to supporting Local Support businesses, while creating positive benefits and equally distributing income to people across all levels of society.

This press release is highly interesting for national festival organisers and entrepreneurs in the tourism and hotel industries, as the content provides useful information on guidelines for managing large-scale festivals sustainably and creating community engagement. Furthermore, it is important news for general tourists planning to travel and join the merit-making event, so they can prepare to experience the unique culture of the Phuket people later this year.