Festival and seasonal trips
Festivals and natural seasons that are worth planning a trip around.
Festival and seasonal trips at a glance
- Itineraries25
- In India11 itineraries
- Abroad14 itineraries
- Destinations11 places
- Trip lengths3 to 14 days
- Trip stylePrivate, customisable
- Best suited toCulture and photography lovers
- Also suitsRepeat travellers wanting something new
Some trips are worth timing to the week. Festival dates often follow lunar calendars, so we confirm them each year before you book.
Festivals in India
- Durga Puja in Kolkata (September or October).
- Pushkar Camel Fair at Pushkar (October or November).
- Hornbill Festival near Kohima (early December).
- Rann Utsav in Rann of Kutch (winter months).
- Holi in Mathura & Vrindavan (February or March).
Festivals and seasons abroad
- Yi Peng lantern festival in Chiang Mai (November); see our Thailand Honeymoon Special: Lantern of Love.
- Cherry blossom in Kyoto and Tokyo (late March to early April).
- Tulips at Keukenhof near Amsterdam (Netherlands, spring) and in Srinagar (April).
- Northern lights in Tromsø, Rovaniemi (Lapland) and Iceland (autumn to early spring).
- Snow Festival in Sapporo & Hokkaido (February).
Hotels near festivals fill up early and cost more, so plan three to six months ahead.
Festival and seasonal trips in Tamil Nadu
Plan festival and seasonal trips in Tamil Nadu → Explore Tamil Nadu
Festival and seasonal trips: 25 itineraries
5D / 4NAhmedabad · Rann of KutchRann of Kutch Festival Trip
Full-moon nights on the white salt desert, Rann Utsav tents, Kutch's craft villages and the old capital Bhuj.
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4D / 3NJaipur · PushkarPushkar Camel Fair Trip
Timed for the Kartik full moon: livestock trading, folk performances and ghat rituals at the Pushkar Camel Fair.
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4D / 3NMathura & VrindavanMathura Vrindavan Holi Trip
Holi where it began: Lathmar Holi at Barsana, flower Holi in Vrindavan and temple celebrations across Braj.
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5D / 4NSrinagar · PahalgamKashmir Tulip Festival Trip
Timed for late March or April when Asia's largest tulip garden blooms, with the valley's orchards in blossom.
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5D / 4NKolkataKolkata Durga Puja Special
Four nights during Durga Puja to see the city's pandals, rituals and street celebrations at their peak.
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4D / 3NPuriPuri Rath Yatra Trip
Planned around the Rath Yatra, with viewing arrangements and stays booked well in advance.
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4D / 3NZiro ValleyZiro Valley & Music Festival
Apatani villages, rice-fish fields and the Ziro Festival of Music in September (outside festival dates, a quiet village stay).
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4D / 3NKohimaHornbill Festival Tour
The Hornbill Festival at Kisama in early December, plus Khonoma village and the Kohima War Cemetery.
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5D / 4NVaranasiDev Deepawali in Kashi
Kartik Purnima in November, when every ghat of Varanasi is lit with lakhs of diyas, with a reserved boat for the evening and the Ganga Mahotsav concerts.
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4D / 3NPrayagrajMagh Mela at the Sangam
Three nights at Prayagraj during the Magh Mela in January and February, with boats to the Sangam on the main bathing days and a comfortable camp or hotel.
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4D / 3NMaduraiPongal in Madurai
Mid-January in Madurai for Pongal: kolams and sugarcane in the villages, the Meenakshi temple, and jallikattu at Alanganallur when it is held.
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5D / 4NChiang Mai · BangkokChiang Mai Yi Peng Lantern Trip
Planned around Chiang Mai's lantern festival in November, with temple visits, a cooking class and an ethical elephant sanctuary.
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8D / 7NTokyo · Mount Fuji & Hakone · KyotoJapan Cherry Blossom Tour
Timed for sakura season, with blossom viewing in Tokyo, Fuji's lakes and Kyoto's temple gardens.
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7D / 6NSapporo & Hokkaido · TokyoHokkaido Snow Festival
Sapporo's February Snow Festival, Otaru's canal and a day on the slopes, with Tokyo to finish.
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6D / 5NParo · ThimphuBhutan Festival Trip
Timed for the Paro or Thimphu Tshechu, when masked dances fill the dzong courtyards.
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4D / 3NMauritiusMauritius Shivaratri Pilgrimage
Timed for Maha Shivaratri at Grand Bassin's sacred lake, with island sightseeing.
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7D / 6NDubaiDubai Shopping Festival Trip
Timed for the Dubai Shopping Festival with Global Village, fireworks and sales.
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6D / 5NMunich & Bavaria · Salzburg & HallstattGermany Christmas Markets
A December trip for the Christmas markets of Munich and Salzburg, with Neuschwanstein Castle in winter and mulled-wine evenings.
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4D / 3NNetherlandsAmsterdam Tulip Season Trip
Keukenhof gardens and the bulb fields in spring, plus Amsterdam's canals and museums.
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6D / 5NHelsinki · Rovaniemi (Lapland)Lapland Christmas Holiday
Santa Claus Village, husky and reindeer safaris and a glass igloo night.
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6D / 5NRovaniemi (Lapland)Lapland Santa Kids' Holiday
Santa Claus Village, a husky sled ride, reindeer farms and snow play in Rovaniemi, with warm-clothing tips and short outdoor sessions for young children.
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3D / 2NKuala LumpurThaipusam at Batu Caves
Kuala Lumpur at Thaipusam in January or February, with the kavadi procession to the Murugan shrine at Batu Caves and the city's Hindu temples.
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14D / 13NMadinah · MakkahRamadan Umrah: Last Ten Nights
Madinah first, then the last ten nights of Ramadan in Makkah for taraweeh, tahajjud and Laylat al-Qadr at the Haram, arranged with our licensed Umrah partner; book as early as possible.
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7D / 6NNajaf · KarbalaArbaeen Walk to Karbala
Ziyarat in Najaf, then the Arbaeen walk of about 80 km to Karbala with mawkib rest stops along the way, and four nights near the shrines, subject to current government travel advice.
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6D / 5NChiang Mai · Pattaya · BangkokThailand Honeymoon Special: Lantern of Love
A six-day couples' trip timed for Chiang Mai's Yi Peng lantern festival (usually in November), followed by Pattaya's Coral Island and a river cruise dinner in Bangkok.
View itinerary →25 itineraries
Destinations for festival and seasonal trips
GujaratRann of Kutch
The Great Rann of Kutch is a vast white salt desert that glows under the full moon.
RajasthanPushkar
Pushkar is a small holy town around a sacred lake with 52 ghats and one of the very few temples to Brahma.
Uttar PradeshMathura & Vrindavan
Mathura is revered as Lord Krishna's birthplace and Vrindavan as the land of his childhood.
Arunachal PradeshZiro Valley
Ziro is a high valley of rice fields and pine hills, home to the Apatani people, whose farming system integrates fish and rice.
NagalandKohima
Kohima is Nagaland's capital and the site of a pivotal 1944 battle, remembered at the Commonwealth War Cemetery.
ThailandChiang Mai
Chiang Mai is a cultural city ringed by mountains, known for historic temples, traditional Lanna culture and night markets.
JapanSapporo & Hokkaido
Sapporo is the capital of Hokkaido, Japan's northern island, famous for its February Snow Festival, ski resorts like Niseko, lavender fields at Furano in summer and excellent seafood and ramen.
United KingdomEdinburgh
Edinburgh is Scotland's capital, with a castle on a volcanic rock, the medieval Royal Mile, the Georgian New Town and the world's largest arts festival every August.
GermanyMunich & Bavaria
Munich is Bavaria's capital, known for its beer halls, Marienplatz's glockenspiel, the BMW Museum and Oktoberfest.
FinlandRovaniemi (Lapland)
Rovaniemi, on the Arctic Circle, is the official hometown of Santa Claus.
BrazilRio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro is a city of beaches and mountains: Christ the Redeemer on Corcovado, the Sugarloaf cable car, Copacabana and Ipanema, and the world's most famous Carnival.
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