What's on in Madikeri, India through the year

Peak crowds — travelers describe it as peak season, Christmas to New Year rush

Nothing new starts in January.

Still on: Coffee harvest (15 Nov – 31 Jan (usually)), Christmas to New Year rush (22 Dec – 2 Jan (usually))

Busy — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather

Nothing new starts in February.

Shoulder season — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

• Nature

  Coffee blossom

  1 Mar – 20 Apr · usuallyWildflowers & blooms

  A day or two after the first pre-monsoon showers the estates flower all at once in white, with a jasmine-like scent that lasts little more than a week, so it cannot be booked to the day. Source ↗

Peak crowds — Kodava Hockey Festival, Summer vacation (Kerala / far south) in India

• Festival

  Kodava Hockey Festival

  1 Apr – 10 May · usuallySporting eventCrowded

  A month-long field hockey tournament between hundreds of Kodava family teams, hosted by a different clan somewhere in Kodagu each year (Napoklu in 2026). Finals weekend brings the whole district out. Source ↗

Still on: Coffee blossom (1 Mar – 20 Apr (usually))

Peak crowds — Kodava Hockey Festival, Summer vacation (north & east) in India

Nothing new starts in May.

Still on: Kodava Hockey Festival (1 Apr – 10 May (usually))

Busy — Summer vacation (north & east) in India, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

• Hazard

  Monsoon landslides on the ghat roads

  10 Jun – 31 Aug · usuallyLandslide seasonClosures

  Heavy rain brings landslides onto NH 275 through the Sampaje ghat; the district bans heavy vehicles for weeks and has closed the ghat at night, so allow for detours and avoid driving after dark. Source ↗

Quiet — school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it, one of its worst months for weather

• Nature

  Abbey Falls at full flow

  1 Jul – 30 Sep · usuallyHigh water

  The falls just outside town are at their fullest in the monsoon and the weeks after it; the viewing bridge is spray-soaked and the path slippery, and access can close during the heaviest rain.

Still on: Monsoon landslides on the ghat roads (10 Jun – 31 Aug (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in August.

Still on: Monsoon landslides on the ghat roads (10 Jun – 31 Aug (usually)), Abbey Falls at full flow (1 Jul – 30 Sep (usually))

Busy — Madikeri Dasara, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Festival

  Kail Podh

  3 SepMajor festival

  The Kodava festival of arms, kept on the third of September, when the guns come down off the wall, are cleaned and blessed, and the families shoot at targets in the yard. A household affair rather than a public one. Source ↗

• Festival

  Madikeri Dasara

  20 Sep – 25 Oct · usuallyReligious feastCrowdedBook early

  Ten nights building to a procession of illuminated mantapas the height of a house, dragged through the town until dawn. The last two nights the streets are impassable and every room in the district is taken. Source ↗

Still on: Abbey Falls at full flow (1 Jul – 30 Sep (usually))

Peak crowds — Madikeri Dasara, Kaveri Sankramana at Talakaveri

• Festival

  Kaveri Sankramana at Talakaveri

  14–20 Oct · usuallyReligious feastCrowded

  At a set moment in mid-October the spring at the river's source rises in the tank, and thousands are there on the hill to see it and bathe. The road up from Bhagamandala is single track and takes hours that morning. Source ↗

• Holiday

  Diwali

  15 Oct – 15 Nov · usuallyCrowdedBook earlyClosures

  Diwali is a public holiday and the biggest festival of the Hindu year: homes and markets are lit, fireworks go on for several nights, many shops close on the day itself, and Indians travel to family or on holiday, so trains, flights and hotels book up early. Source ↗

Still on: Madikeri Dasara (20 Sep – 25 Oct (usually))

Busy — Diwali

• Nature

  Coffee harvest

  15 Nov – 31 Jan · usually

  Arabica comes off first and robusta into January, and the estates run on migrant labour and drying yards for three months. Homestays on working estates are the point of coming here in this window.

• Festival

  Puttari

  20 Nov – 15 Dec · usuallyHarvest

  The Kodava harvest festival, always on a full moon night at the end of the year: the first sheaf is cut by torchlight, then the village dances in the open ground until it gets light. Source ↗

Still on: Diwali (15 Oct – 15 Nov (usually))

Peak crowds — Christmas to New Year rush, Winter break in India

• Holiday

  Christmas to New Year rush

  22 Dec – 2 Jan · usuallyChristmas & New YearCrowdedBook early

  The week from Christmas to New Year is India's busiest holiday stretch: schools and many offices break, domestic travellers pour into hill stations, heritage towns and resorts, and hotels charge peak rates, often with a New Year's Eve dinner surcharge. Book early. Source ↗

Still on: Coffee harvest (15 Nov – 31 Jan (usually)), Puttari (20 Nov – 15 Dec (usually))