Diwali 2026: celebrate in India, Singapore or Leicester

Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh

Varanasi celebrates Diwali on 8 November, but its best-known festival night comes two weeks later: Dev Deepawali, on Tuesday 24 November 2026, according to Trivenicabs. That night, the ghat steps fill with diyas and the Dashashwamedh aarti grows in scale. Boats remain the most popular way to see the lights from the river. If your trip is fixed for 8 November, the evening aarti is still open with a guide (see below).

Highlights

• Thousands of diyas on the steps, from Ravidas Ghat to Raj Ghat depending on the guide
• A larger Dashashwamedh aarti on the evening of Dev Deepawali
• A festival of ritual, lived by residents as much as by visitors

On safety, guides warn about fake donations for cremation wood and fake guides near Manikarnika Ghat. Photographing cremations is frowned upon. In the evening, avoid quiet lanes and take a licensed taxi or rickshaw. To prepare for the next edition, our Dev Deepawali guide for Varanasi covers the same ground.

If you want to see the evening aarti with a guide, this 3 to 4 hour tour is open on 8 November, departing at 5 pm.

Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh

The Deepotsav in Ayodhya is the most widely covered event on the eve of Diwali in India. The government of Uttar Pradesh has not yet published the 2026 date: the press points to the evening of Saturday 7 November, but one guide goes for Sunday 8. Keep both evenings in mind and check official announcements before you book.

The 2026 target is about 30 lakh (3 million) diyas, according to September press reports. Previous editions broke records: 5.84 lakh lamps in 2020, around 25 lakh in 2024 according to the press, and in 2025 two Guinness records announced, with around 2.6 million lamps at Ram Ki Paidi and across 56 ghats. Figures vary between articles, so go by the Guinness record rather than a precise number.

Highlights

• The lamps of Ram Ki Paidi, along the Saryu ghats
• The collective aarti at Saryu Ghat and the illumination of the Ram Mandir

Kolkata, West Bengal

In Bengal, Diwali is dominated by Kali Puja, held on the night of Sunday 8 November. The main rite takes place around midnight, sometimes into the night of 8 to 9 November. Pandals, the temporary marquees, go up across the neighbourhoods. According to one guide, the big Kali Puja pandals are mostly on the outskirts, in Barasat, Naihati and Madhyamgram. Kumartuli, the district of potters and idol-makers, remains the best place to see how the statues are made.

On the evening of 8 November, Lakshmi Puja is also celebrated. Panchangs don’t all give the same time: the window runs roughly from 5 to 7 pm depending on the source, so check a Kolkata calendar on the day. For the Kali Puja night, the temples of Kalighat and Dakshineswar are very busy. Stay alert around self-appointed priests and guides who ask for offerings at high prices.

Highlights

• A dense neighbourhood life, more intense than in the tourist cities
• Kumartuli, the district of idol-makers

Amritsar, Punjab

Diwali is marked at the Golden Temple (Harmandir Sahib) as the festival of liberation of Guru Hargobind Sahib and the 52 princes. According to the Sikh calendar, Bandi Chhor Divas falls on Sunday 8 November 2026, with a possible one-day shift. The complex lights up with thousands of lamps and candles, kirtan and langar carry on, and fireworks light up the sarovar. In recent years, the display was cut to around ten minutes because of pollution, according to local press.

Entry is free and the site is open all day. Security checks can create long queues on festival days. Cover your head (a head covering is provided at the entrance), take off your shoes, and don’t smoke or drink alcohol on site. These are general rules: reconfirm them on the SGPC website before your visit. No 2026 SGPC notice had been published at the time of writing, so the illumination times are still unknown.

Highlights

• A simple, welcoming experience, open to everyone
• The langar, the free community meal served during the festival

Mumbai, Maharashtra

Mumbai has an urban Diwali. The Dadar markets fill with faral, flowers, kandils and puja items in the days before the festival, to the point of being packed. Marine Drive, the « Queen’s Necklace », lights up and draws a busy evening crowd during Diwali week. No 2026 municipal programme had been published at the time of writing.

Fireworks are subject to a time limit set by the Bombay High Court (a window from 7 pm to 10 pm, according to a previous year). No 2026 order had been found. The only fireworks allowed are certified « green crackers ». The BMC lists 101 for the fire brigade and 1916 for its municipal service.

Highlights

• The Dadar markets, for festival goods
• Marine Drive, for the evening lights over the sea

Singapore, Little India

Deepavali falls on Sunday 8 November 2026, an official public holiday in Singapore according to the Ministry of Manpower (MOM). Because the festival falls on a Sunday, Monday 9 November is a replacement holiday, with government offices closed that day.

Little India has been lit up since the switch-on ceremony on Saturday 3 October 2026, on Birch Road. The decorations cover more than 2 km of Serangoon Road and come on every evening from 7 pm to midnight, according to local press. The Festival Village on Campbell Lane runs from 10 October to 8 November, from 7 pm, with a market, food and crafts. No end date for the lights had been announced. Free concerts are planned on the Campbell Lane stage on Saturdays 17 and 31 October, from 8 to 10 pm.

For a guided visit, onePA runs a Deepavali Light Up Tour on Saturday 17 October, from 5:30 to 8 pm, for S$5 per person. On 24 October, « Glitter & Glow » runs from 2 to 8 pm in Sembawang, at 117B Canberra Crescent. To eat, Tekka Market and the food centre upstairs are the place to start, then Komala Vilas or Banana Leaf Apolo on Race Course Road for rice served on banana leaves. If you would rather explore the hawker centres on foot, our private hawker centre food tours set out the options.

Highlights

• An outdoor Diwali, open to families and visitors alike
• Simple logistics, with direct flights from London

If you want to explore the neighbourhood with a guide on the day itself, this 4 hour walking tour covers Little India, Chinatown and Arab Street. It runs on 8 November.

Leicester, United Kingdom

Leicester celebrates Diwali on Sunday 8 November 2026. In a statement of 5 May 2026, the city council announced a family festival at Cossington Recreation Ground: music and dance on stage, cultural performances, food stalls, arts and crafts, and a children’s funfair. The plans were still provisional at the time of writing.

Visit Leicester’s page places the festival on the Golden Mile, Belgrave Road: rangoli, saree and jewellery shops, and an illuminated big wheel. The two sources don’t name the same main venue. Neither the lighting time nor the end time has been published. The council has not confirmed the big wheel for 2026, and its statement announces no fireworks display. In 2025, Belgrave Road was closed to traffic from 5 pm to about 9.30 pm: a precedent, not an announcement for 2026.

Highlights

• A community festival on British soil, with the everyday life of the Golden Mile
• The only destination on this list that needs no flight from London