The word “Rajasthan” itself makes us think of royalty, culture, heritage, and, vibrant colors. The spirit of incredible India comes majorly from Rajasthan. If you want to explore this state to a great extent then you should attend the fairs and festivals of Rajasthan. Here we are listing some major festivals of Rajasthan that you must attend once in your lifetime.
1. Brij Holi, Bharatpur
Holi is the most loved festival of India which is celebrated in Bharatpur in a grand style. Since Lord Krishna is worshiped in this festival, the love story of Radha & Krishna is showcased in form of the “Raslila” dance. People of Bharatpur are at their happiest self on this festival, they wear the brightest clothes and sing Holi songs. Travelers from all around the world come to witness this lively Braj festival of Bharatpur.
2. Gangaur Festival, Jaipur
Following the day of Holi, the Gangaur festival gets started and celebrated for 18 days by women. On the final day, you can see the magnificence of this festival in almost all cities of Rajasthan but Jaipur’s Gangaur is something you must be a part of for once. In Jaipur, a grand procession happens with the idol of Goddess Gauri (Parvati) carried by women all around the city accompanied by elephants, chariots, old royal palanquins, camels, and dancing folk artists. The celebration ends with lighting fireworks in the sky when the idol of Gangaur is immersed in water which indicates the departure of Gauri.
3. Desert Festival, Jaisalmer
To make your Rajasthan tour memorable, you must visit Jaisalmer in February when the 3 days event is held by Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation. Desert festival is celebrated in Sam Dunes of Jaisalmer desert. Delicious food, folk songs & dance, camel race, longest mustache, turban tying, and Mr. Desert competition are the highlights of this festival.
4. Teej Festival, Jaipur
If you’re a shopaholic and planning to visit Jaipur, you must visit here in monsoon so that you can see the grandeur of the Teej procession. The markets of Jaipur are filled with beautiful clothes, jewelry, and most importantly Ghewar. On Teej, women beautify themselves; they apply Mehendi and wear Leheriya. Do visit Jaipur to eyewitness this colorful celebration of Teej.
5. Pushkar Fair
This spectacular 5-day fair is witnessed by thousands of international travelers with great eagerness every year. It’s a camel fair to sell and buy camels. You can enjoy puppet shows, camel races, gypsy dance, etc. You can shop for camel milk cakes, handicrafts, traditional jewelry, shawls, and many more unique art pieces from this fair.
6. Elephant Festival, Jaipur
We swear that the elephant festival of Jaipur city is a “never seen before” kind of thing for most of you. Have you ever seen elephant’s polo, elephants’ race, or elephants’ tug of war? Come to Jaipur during the time of Holi and see elephants doing all of these. We’re sure that you’ll be overwhelmed by seeing groomed and decorated elephants doing catwalkS in the Polo ground of Jaipur.
7. Summer & Winter Festival, Mount Abu
Both summer (in May) and winter (in December) festivalS are celebrated in the only hill station of Rajasthan i.e. Mt Abu. During these festivals, this exotic site draws a lot of tourists.
There are many more interesting festivals celebrated in Rajasthan like the Rajasthan International folk festival (Jodhpur), Jaipur Literature Festival, Kite festival, Mewar festival, Beneshwar Fair, etc. To avoid any kind of discomfort, pre-plan your visit to such festivals by booking cabs, flights, and stays in advance.
