The winner was Varaporn Paisari, 17, from Tokoroa, who said she was "very happy".
First runner up was Sarcha Munroe, 14, from Papamoa.
Sarcha said the girls involved in the pageant had been walking around and showing off their traditional Thai dresses.
"This is my first year doing the pageant. It's not really a competition, it's just putting makeup on and walking with some friends.
"Everyone is so happy for the winner because everyone gets a prize and we're all still friends."
The second runner up was Panthira Kosinanonth, 20, from Palmerston North, who said she was surprised at the placing.
The event was a fundraiser for the Wat Paknam temple in Welcome Bay.
Monk Phra Sitthipol Chanklad said people would come to show respect and to pour water over a statue of Buddha.
"Water keeps us cool. Water is also for washing dirty things. In Thailand, it gets very hot in summer time so we do a ceremony like this where we pour water to cool down."
Event organiser Chintana Chareornsittichai said the event had gone well.
"There were plenty of people, more than we expected, and everybody is happy. We got about 500 people.
"We had dancers all through the day, all sorts of different dances from different areas of Thailand."