What's on in Mumbai (Bombay), India through the year

Peak crowds — the editor's peak month, Mumbai Marathon

• Festival

  Mumbai Marathon

  15–21 Jan · usuallyMajor festivalCrowdedClosures

  The third Sunday of January, and the one morning the seafront road and the causeways belong to people rather than traffic. Everything south of Worli is shut to cars until noon. Source ↗

Still on: Wedding season (15 Nov – 15 Feb)

Peak crowds — the editor's peak month, Kala Ghoda Arts Festival

• Festival

  Kala Ghoda Arts Festival

  1–15 Feb · usuallyMajor festivalCrowded

  Nine free days in the old fort district, starting the first Saturday of February: installations in the street, readings and a lot of very good food stalls. Source ↗

• Festival

  Holi

  3–4 MarMajor festivalClosures

  The last big street festival before the hot season. Most of the city takes the day off and colour gets thrown in housing-society compounds rather than on the main roads. Source ↗

Still on: Wedding season (15 Nov – 15 Feb)

Shoulder season — between the peaks, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in March.

Still on: Holi (3–4 Mar)

Quiet — the editor's quiet month, Summer vacation (Kerala / far south) in India

Nothing new starts in April.

Quiet — the editor's quiet month, Summer vacation (north & east) in India

Nothing new starts in May.

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

• Season

  Monsoon onset

  5–20 Jun · usuallyRisk

  The normal arrival date over Mumbai is 11 June, and the whole city reorganises around it within a day. Watching the first burst come in off the Arabian Sea is a genuine event here. Source ↗

• Hazard

  Flooding on the suburban lines

  15 Jun – 15 Sep · usuallyFlood seasonClosures

  When the tide is high and the rain is heavy the tracks go under and the local trains stop, which strands the city rather than merely slowing it. Keep plans within walking distance on the worst days. Source ↗

Quiet — the editor's quiet month, school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in July.

Still on: Flooding on the suburban lines (15 Jun – 15 Sep (usually))

Busy — Janmashtami and Dahi Handi, school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it

• Festival

  Janmashtami and Dahi Handi

  12 Aug – 8 Sep · usuallyMajor festivalCrowded

  The morning after Krishna's birthday, govinda troupes go junction to junction building human pyramids to reach a clay pot of curd strung above the street. Traffic in the older suburbs works around them all day. Source ↗

• Festival

  Ganesh Chaturthi

  14–25 SepMajor festivalCrowdedClosures

  Ten days that belong to the neighbourhoods, ending with idols carried down to Girgaon Chowpatty and into the sea. The immersion days close roads across the city. Source ↗

Still on: Flooding on the suburban lines (15 Jun – 15 Sep (usually))

Busy — between the peaks, Janmashtami and Dahi Handi

• Festival

  Bandra Fair

  13–20 SepMajor festivalCrowded

  The week after 8 September the hill road up to the Mount Mary basilica in Bandra becomes a fair — stalls, wax offerings, hundreds of thousands of people, Catholic or otherwise. Bandra's traffic gives up for the duration. Source ↗

• Festival

  Navratri and Dussehra

  25 Sep – 25 Oct · usuallyMajor festivalCrowded

  Nine nights of garba in the grounds and society compounds of the northern suburbs, which is where the Gujarati half of the city keeps its calendar. Source ↗

Still on: Flooding on the suburban lines (15 Jun – 15 Sep (usually)), Janmashtami and Dahi Handi (12 Aug – 8 Sep (usually)), Ganesh Chaturthi (14–25 Sep)

Busy — between the peaks, Navratri and Dussehra

• Festival

  Diwali

  8 NovCrowded

  Lamps on every balcony and a week of visiting either side of the day itself. Flights and trains out of the city are booked solid, and the air after the fireworks is the price of it. Source ↗

Still on: Navratri and Dussehra (25 Sep – 25 Oct (usually))

Peak crowds — the editor's peak month, Diwali

• Season

  Wedding season

  15 Nov – 15 FebDry seasonCrowded

  The dry months are when Mumbai marries, and hotel ballrooms, flower markets and traffic all move around it. Rooms are harder to get on auspicious dates than on public holidays.

Still on: Diwali (8 Nov)

Peak crowds — the editor's peak month, Wedding season

Nothing new starts in December.

Still on: Wedding season (15 Nov – 15 Feb)