The award was presented during the IFEA Annual Convention & Expo, held on Sunday (Sept 29) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the US.
Phuket earned top honours, receiving the ‘Gold Pinnacle Award’ for Best Parade as part of its Phuket Peranakan Festival 2024.
In addition to Phuket, other cities honored with the "World Festival and Event City" award include Gwangju, South Korea; McAllen, Texas; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Pattanachai Singhawara, Director of the Southern Regional Office of the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB), accepted the award on behalf of Phuket.
Winning the ‘World Festival City’ title is expected to elevate the standards of event organisation in Phuket and attract more global visitors, solidifying the island’s position as a cultural and tourism hub, said an official report of Phuket winning the accolade.
The award comes as the Phuket Vegetarian Festival for this year begins on Thursday (Oct 3).