Pushkar Camel Fair 2026: Dates and Rituals

1. Pushkar and its fair at a glance

Pushkar, holy town and livestock market

Ajmer district, Rajasthan Free entry November 2026 Contests and bathing

Pushkar is built around Pushkar Sarovar lake, about 14 km from Ajmer. Jaipur airport is 145 to 154 km away, and the bus from Jaipur city covers about 133 km. The fair has two names: Pushkar Camel Fair in English and Pushkar Mela in Hindi, where mela means festival or fair. It brings together a livestock market (camels, horses, cattle) and a Hindu pilgrimage whose high point is the Kartik Purnima bath.

What to remember

• Trade comes first, contests and rituals follow.
• The Kartik Purnima bath falls on 24 November 2026, a date set by the lunar calendar.
• The 2026 window is announced by the official Indian tourism portal, with no confirmation from local authorities.

Pixidia tip: do not book your accommodation or flights based on the 2025 dates (30 October to 5 November). Those were last year’s dates. Check the 2026 window on official sources before you pay.

If you arrive before the bathing day, a walking tour of the town can help you get your bearings. The product title promises a walking tour of the spiritual city; the detailed content, duration and meeting point are on the Viator listing, which is the reference. Viator runs two departures a day, at 9:45 am and 4:00 pm.

When to book: the price shown was checked on 15 October 2026. The week of the fair (17 to 24 November) is when prices rise most, according to travel blogs: book now, without waiting for the window.

Spiritual City Walking Tour – THE Pushkar Route From $6.76 per person (adult rate, checked on 15 October 2026), not checked against the fair dates: check the price of your time slot on the listing · ★ 4.99 (959 reviews)

Check the time slots on Viator

2. 2026 dates: what is announced and what is confirmed

Two dates coexist, and they need to be told apart. The first is astronomical: Kartik Purnima, the full moon of the Kartik month, falls on Tuesday 24 November 2026. The full-moon tithi begins on 23 November at 11:42 pm and ends on 24 November at 8:20 pm, Indian time, according to Hindutone and Drik Panchang.

The second concerns the fair. The official Incredible India portal shows a window from 17 to 24 November 2026. The Rajasthan authorities have not confirmed this window: the official Rajasthan Tourism page, updated on 30 July 2026, gives no date for this year. Trivenicabs announces 17 to 25 November, and Bhakti Bharat 20 to 24 November. There is therefore, for now, no official day-by-day programme.

Source: Incredible India, Pushkar Camel Fair, checked on 15 October 2026; 2025 editions per ETV Bharat.

The religious calendar around the fair is more stable, since it follows the moon. Dev Uthani Ekadashi, which marks in tradition the end of Vishnu’s sleep, falls on 20 November in the smarta calendar and on 21 November in the Vaishnava calendar. Tulsi Vivah takes place on 21 November, and Bhishma Panchak runs from 20 to 24 November.

Source: Hindutone, Pushkar Kartik Purnima Snan 2026 and Drik Panchang, Pushkara Snana, checked on 15 October 2026.

3. The lake and the Brahma Temple

Pushkar Sarovar lake, also called Brahma Sarovar, is surrounded by 52 ghats according to Esamskriti, the stone steps that lead down to the water. Some carry the names of the rulers who funded them, such as those of Jaipur, Gwalior, Kota or Holkar. For the rites, the ghats cited are Brahma Ghat and Gau Ghat, according to an urban hiking guide and Hindutone.

The state of the lake and the opening of the ghats for the 2026 edition have not been the subject of any official notice as of the date of consultation. Some articles describe a lake that is nearly empty or polluted, but their publication dates are unreliable: we do not repeat them.

The Brahma Temple, built or rebuilt in the 14th century according to Wikipedia, is one of the very few temples dedicated to Brahma in the world. Several guides claim it is the only one; the sources we checked speak instead of a very small number of temples dedicated to Brahma. Opening hours vary from site to site, and those published by Incredible India are the only official ones available.

Source: Incredible India, Pushkar Camel Fair, checked on 15 October 2026. Other sites give different hours: check on site.

The sanctuary’s rules, including those on shoes and photos, have not been verified for 2026. Plan to take your shoes off at the entrance and ask on site before taking photos.

4. The market, the camels and the contests

Trade and festivities do not take place at the same time. According to Midnight Blue Elephant, a guide specialised in travel to India, the first week is devoted to buying and selling animals: camels, horses and cattle are shown on the fairground. The second week hosts contests, shows and rituals. The same guide observes that most animals have left by the time the official programme begins. This is a field observation, not an official rule.

Two weeks, two rhythms

Trade first Contests next Free entry

Incredible India lists the planned activities: moustache contest, Matka Tod, bride contest, camel beauty contest, hot-air balloon ride and camel safari. These activities are listed without times, and no dated official programme has been published at this stage.

What you see on site

• The moustache, turban and bride contests and the camel race, as described by guides and by Midnight Blue Elephant.
• The tug of war between locals and tourists, a popular moment with visitors.

Pixidia tip: coming only for the livestock market means a reduced fair. To see many animals, arrive as soon as the window opens, which is 17 November according to the announcements.

The number of animals is falling. The 2025 edition opened with 207 animals, including 196 camels, according to Patrika English (22 October 2025). That figure marks the start of the edition, not its total. No count has been published for 2026.

Rajasthan’s 2015 law restricted the transfer of camels out of the state, notably for slaughter, and trade fell sharply. In 2025 the government lifted, under regulated conditions, the ban on transport between states, according to ETV Bharat (26 October 2025). Breeders interviewed at the time expected fewer camels on the fairground.

Camel prices are not published by any official source, and the figures that circulate come from earlier years. We do not quote them here, because they do not reflect 2026.

Photographs call for tact. Some breeders ask for a small payment or tobacco, and some local photographers offer to be photographed for a fee. Always ask permission before photographing a person, especially a breeder or a bather.

5. The rites of the Kartik Purnima bath

Tradition holds that Brahma performed a great ritual sacrifice (yajna) at Pushkar between the eleventh lunar day of Kartik, Ekadashi, and the full moon, Purnima. The Kartik Purnima bath, called Mahasnana, is considered the most auspicious. The Pancha Tirtha Yatra, the pilgrimage around five sacred sites, ends with this bath, according to Esamskriti.

The bath is traditionally taken early in the morning, near sunrise, in the ghats including Brahma Ghat and Gau Ghat. The opening of the ghats for 2026 has not been the subject of any official notice. Check the sunrise time in Pushkar before you go, since calendars give different times depending on the reference city.

Hindutone reports several rules for the ghats, which we recommend you follow:

• Take your shoes off before going down to the water.
• Do not photograph people bathing without their permission.
• Do not put soap or plastic into the water.
• Hindutone also notes a ban on alcohol, meat and eggs in town. No 2026 order has been found to confirm this rule.

The route of the parikrama, the walking circuit around the lake, is not published in any source we checked. Ask your hotel or a guide the day before for the route of the day.

6. Getting there: plane, train, taxi and bus

Pushkar has neither a railway station nor an airport. You need to go through Ajmer, the nearest railway station, or Jaipur, the nearest airport. Both journeys then continue by taxi, shuttle or bus.

Jaipur, gateway to Rajasthan

JAI airport, 145 to 154 km Ajmer station, 14 km

For arrival by air, the nearest airport is Jaipur, 145 to 154 km from Pushkar. Flights to Jaipur cost more during the fair, according to the Happyfares guide: book your flight now.

Pixidia tip: for a trip that combines the bathing rites with the rest of Rajasthan, book your flight to Jaipur and your transfer to Pushkar at the same time.

The prices below are indicative and not guaranteed for fair week.

Source: Trivenicabs, Pushkar Mela 2026, Ixigo, Jaipur-Pushkar bus, checked on 15 October 2026.

For the train, Delhi to Ajmer takes 5 to 7 hours depending on the service. The 2026 timetable for a Shatabdi train is not confirmed: check with Indian Railways before you book. During the fair, special services have not been confirmed for 2026.

For the visa, the Indian e-Visa is the route to check for foreign visitors. Check the requirements on the official Indian e-Visa portal before you book.

If you extend your stay in Rajasthan, our guide to Diwali 2026 in Jaipur covers the region’s festivals of light.

7. Budget and accommodation

Entry to the fair is free. Expenses come from transport, accommodation, meals and guides. The ranges below come from undated travel blogs: they are orders of magnitude, not prices verified for 2026. The blogs agree on a sharp rise during fair week.

Source: Happyfares, Pushkar Camel Fair 2026 guide (blog, undated), checked on 15 October 2026.

Book now. Pushkar.com advises booking 4 to 6 months ahead, and Pushkarcattlefair.com 3 to 6 months. For 2026, these lead times have already passed: the announced window starts in about five weeks, on 17 November, without official confirmation. Both sites are commercial, so their lead times are recommendations, not rules.

Other costs, still from undated sources: a shuttle between Ajmer and Pushkar costs about ₹1,000, according to Midnight Blue Elephant.

On money, bring rupees for purchases and small service providers. For November, the weather averages (undated model estimates from WeatherAPI and Wanderlog) show 29 to 30 °C by day, 14 to 18 °C at night and about one rainy day: hot days, cool nights, so bring a jacket for the evenings. On the fairground there is very little shade: bring water and a scarf against the dust.

8. Safety and official advice

Official advisories do not single out the fair, but they set the security context. Global Affairs Canada, in its update of 14 October 2026, recommends a high degree of caution in Rajasthan and Punjab, and advises against all travel within 10 km of the Pakistan border.

The UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), in its update of 7 October 2026, advises against all travel within 10 km of the India-Pakistan border. The Wagah-Attari crossing remains closed, except for the daily border retreat ceremony. Pushkar is in Ajmer district, inside Rajasthan, well beyond the 10 km border zone covered by these advisories. Canada, however, calls for a high degree of caution across all of Rajasthan.

Canada also lists crowd crushes at religious gatherings among serious risks. For insurance steps in a risk zone, read our guide to travel insurance in conflict zones.

What other guides don’t tell you

Each point links to its source and its date of consultation.

• 2025 dates still circulate for 2026. Some directories repeat 30 October to 5 November, the dates of the 2025 edition. For 2026, the announced window is 17 to 24 November (Incredible India, checked on 15 October 2026).
• Official advisories call for caution in Rajasthan. Global Affairs Canada (14 October 2026) recommends a high degree of caution across Rajasthan and advises against the 10 km around the Pakistan border; the FCDO (7 October 2026) advises against the same border zone. Pushkar lies well beyond those 10 km (travel.gc.ca; gov.uk, checked on 15 October 2026).
• The fair has no entry ticket. Incredible India states that entry is free (official source, checked on 15 October 2026).
• Trade and the programme do not happen together. Most animals have left by the time the official programme starts, according to Midnight Blue Elephant (specialist blog, checked on 15 October 2026). This is an expert observation, not an official rule.
• In 2026, the end of the fair falls on the full-moon day. The announced window ends on 24 November, the day of Kartik Purnima. This coincidence is specific to this year (Incredible India; Drik Panchang, checked on 15 October 2026).