Festivals of Kashmir — A Year-Round Celebration of Culture, Faith & Tradition

Tulip Festival (March-April)

The Indira Gandhi Tulip Garden in Srinagar bursts into bloom with 1.6 million tulips across 60 varieties. This month-long festival in April marks the beginning of spring. The garden is set against the Zabarwan mountains with Dal Lake below — one of Kashmir’s most photographed scenes.

Navroz (March 21)

Navroz, the Kashmiri New Year, is celebrated by the Kashmiri Pandit community and Shia Muslims. Families prepare traditional dishes, visit shrines, and exchange greetings. The festival has Zoroastrian origins and marks the spring equinox.

Shivratri (February-March)

Herath, as Shivratri is called in Kashmir, is the most important festival for Kashmiri Pandits. It involves elaborate rituals, feasting, and the ceremonial offering of walnuts. Unlike the rest of India, Kashmiri Pandits celebrate it over a single day with unique traditions.

Eid Celebrations

Both Eid-ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-Azha are celebrated with great fervour in Kashmir. The Hazratbal Shrine in Srinagar holds special prayers. Markets come alive, families feast on traditional Wazwan, and the valley takes on a festive atmosphere.

Urs Festivals

The annual Urs (death anniversaries) of Sufi saints draw thousands to shrines across Kashmir. The most famous is the Urs of Sheikh Noor-ud-din Noorani (Nund Reshi) at Charar-e-Sharief. These gatherings feature devotional music, qawwali, and communal meals.

Gurez Festival (August)

A relatively new addition, the Gurez Festival celebrates the unique culture of the Gurez Valley. Traditional music, dance, local handicrafts, and adventure sports showcase this offbeat destination's charm.

Planning Your Visit

Festivals offer a unique window into Kashmiri culture. Plan your trip around the Tulip Festival (April) for spring blooms, or visit during Eid for the valley at its most festive. Contact TDI Holiday Ventures for festival-specific tour packages.

Why festivals matter to a visit

A festival turns a place into a living one. Visiting a market before Eid, seeing the garden during the tulip bloom or hearing the call of a shrine on an Urs day gives you something no sight can: a sense of how people actually live. It also changes logistics: roads close, shops shut, hotels fill and prices rise. Know what falls in your dates, and decide whether you want to join in or to avoid the crowds.

Spring: tulips and Navroz

The tulip garden above Dal Lake opens for a few weeks in spring, usually around April, when thousands of tulips of many colours bloom on terraces facing the lake. It is the most visited event of the year and needs early booking and a morning visit; see our tulip festival guide. Navroz, the new year observed by some communities in March, is marked at home and at shrines with special food and greetings, and is a quiet family occasion rather than a tourist event.

Herath

Herath is the Kashmiri name for Shivratri, the most important festival for Kashmiri Pandits, celebrated in late winter with prayers, family feasting and the ritual use of walnuts. It is a private festival at home and in temples, and visitors should treat it as such. If your dates coincide, ask your host how to be respectful, and avoid walking into prayers or ceremonies.

Eid and the Urs of saints

Eid-ul-Fitr, after Ramadan, and Eid-ul-Azha are celebrated in every town, with prayers at the great mosques, special dishes, new clothes and family visits. Markets are busy and shops may close on the day itself. The Urs, the death anniversary of a Sufi saint, draws thousands to shrines, most famously the shrine at Charar-e-Sharief, and is a devotional gathering with crowds and traffic. Plan around the date, keep to the shrine's rules and go with a local guide if you wish to visit.

Valley festivals

In summer, some high valleys hold local festivals of music, food and crafts, and Gurez has held a festival in August in some years. These are small and welcoming but depend on road access and local organisation, so ask us about the current year. In Ladakh, monastic festivals have their own calendar; see our Ladakh pages if you plan to go on.

The Amarnath Yatra

The yatra, in the summer months, is one of the largest pilgrimages in the country, and it changes roads, hotels and security in the Pahalgam and Sonmarg directions. If your trip overlaps, plan extra time and keep flexible. Our Amarnath yatra page explains how it works.

Etiquette for visitors

• Dress modestly, with shoulders and legs covered, especially at shrines.
• Remove shoes where signs or people ask, and cover your head if requested.
• Ask before photographing people, prayers or ceremonies, and respect a refusal.
• Do not bring alcohol into religious places, and follow local rules during Ramadan.
• Keep voices low at shrines, and do not enter private ceremonies uninvited.

What a festival day can look like

On a major day, you may find the roads near a big shrine closed and the main market shut, while neighbourhood streets fill with families in new clothes and the smell of cooking. A good plan is to ask your host or driver where the best, respectful places to watch are, to start early and to keep the afternoon free. If you are a guest of a family, a small gift of sweets or dry fruit is welcome. If a festival is not on your dates, a visit to a shrine or a market on an ordinary day still shows how faith and trade sit side by side.

Planning with us

Tell us your dates and we check what festivals and closures fall on them, and suggest whether to join in or to plan around them. See our seasonal guide for the calendar of weather and our cultural pages for more.