The useful bit first: the passport deadline is close
Chiang Mai's 2026 MU Month programme is built around a province-wide route called “25 Chedis, 25 Districts: a Path of Faith”. Visitors collect a stamp at a selected sacred chedi in each of Chiang Mai province's 25 districts. The route itself runs from 1 September to 31 December 2026, so there is still time to travel it after September. The time-sensitive part is the booklet: organisers advertise free MU Passports from 1 to 30 September 2026.
The Chiang Mai Tourism and Sports Office says it supported production of 1,000 passports, so “until 30 September” should not be read as a guarantee that every collection point will still have stock late in the month. If the booklet is important to your plans, check locally before making a special trip.
Where the free MU Passport has been distributed
Local reporting on the programme lists four collection points: the Chiang Mai Tourism Business Association office at Sirilanna Villa Resort & Spa, the tourism information booth at Chiang Mai International Airport, Central Chiang Mai Airport, and Central Chiang Mai. The advertised free-distribution period ends on 30 September.
The passport is more than a stamp card. Organisers say it contains background on the selected chedis, links to other faith-related places through QR codes and notes about Lanna beliefs, including associations with the 12 zodiac animals. That makes it potentially useful even if you have no realistic intention of visiting all 25 districts.
What you collect — and what completing the route can earn
The official plan is to collect stamps at the designated sites. Participants who meet the programme's completion conditions can receive a “Chok Dee” (Good Luck) coin; the Tourism and Sports Office says the passports and commemorative coins were part of its support for the project. Organiser information says anyone claiming a completion reward needs to show the stamped passport as proof.
Do not assume every temple operates like an event checkpoint all day. This is a dispersed route across an entire province, not a single controlled festival venue. Temple access, ceremonies and local conditions can vary, so build the route as a series of normal respectful temple visits rather than a race to collect stamps.
One September event is still ahead
The programme's scheduled Saturday alms-giving series at Wat Chedi Luang includes one final September date: Saturday 26 September at 7:00am, in front of Phra Chedi Luang. Earlier MU Month ceremonies and exhibitions have already passed, so travellers should not rely on an old launch schedule and assume the whole September programme is still ahead of them.
If you attend, remember that this is a religious activity first. Dress for an active Buddhist temple, follow staff and temple instructions, keep photography unobtrusive and leave space for worshippers and people making merit.
Why 25 districts matters
The programme is deliberately wider than the Old City temple circuit most visitors know. Chiang Mai's provincial tourism office says the route is intended to move visitors beyond the central district, connect religious heritage with local history and culture, and spread tourism spending into communities around the province. Its broader “Chiang Mai Festival City” work similarly frames year-round events as a way to distribute travel by both season and location.
That is also the practical appeal for repeat visitors: the passport can be a prompt to explore districts you would otherwise skip. But the distances are real. Completing 25 sites across 25 districts is not a one-day Chiang Mai itinerary, and some routes will be much easier with your own transport or a carefully planned driver.
The stamp-collection programme is advertised through 31 December 2026. The free-passport distribution window is the part that ends on 30 September. Check with the Chiang Mai Tourism Business Association or local tourism information staff before travelling solely to collect a booklet after that date.
Official and local sources
The Chiang Mai Tourism and Sports Office announced its support for the MU Month programme, including 1,000 MU Passports, the 25-district route and the Saturday alms-giving series. A later office update on Chiang Mai Festival City again identifies the 25-chedi MU Month route as part of the province's current tourism programme. Chiang Mai Citylife CityNews provides the passport collection points and the 30 September distribution deadline.