What's on in Mysuru, India through the year

Peak crowds — Dasara exhibition, Winter break in India

Nothing new starts in January.

Still on: Dasara exhibition (1 Oct – 15 Jan (usually)), Clear season (15 Nov – 28 Feb)

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

Nothing new starts in February.

Still on: Clear season (15 Nov – 28 Feb)

Peak crowds — Nanjangud Dodda Jatre, Vairamudi Brahmotsava, Melkote

• Festival

  Nanjangud Dodda Jatre

  10 Mar – 15 Apr · usuallyReligious feastCrowded

  A day trip 25 km south: five temple chariots are hauled through Nanjangud's main street for Srikanteshwara, followed by a float festival on the Kabini, and several lakh devotees come for the day. Source ↗

• Festival

  Vairamudi Brahmotsava, Melkote

  10 Mar – 15 Apr · usuallyReligious feastCrowded

  About 50 km north, the hill temple of Cheluvanarayana holds its twelve-day spring festival; on the main night the deity wears the diamond Vairamudi crown in a procession that draws huge crowds. Source ↗

Peak crowds — Nanjangud Dodda Jatre, Vairamudi Brahmotsava, Melkote

Nothing new starts in April.

Still on: Nanjangud Dodda Jatre (10 Mar – 15 Apr (usually)), Vairamudi Brahmotsava, Melkote (10 Mar – 15 Apr (usually))

Busy — Summer vacation (north & east) in India

• Festival

  Mango and Jackfruit Mela

  15 May – 5 Jun · usuallyFood & drink festival

  The Horticulture Department sets up farmers' stalls at Curzon Park or Nishad Bagh for a few days in late May, selling naturally ripened mangoes and jackfruit straight from growers. Source ↗

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

• Season

  Monsoon on the plateau

  1 Jun – 30 Sep · usually

  Milder than the coast on the other side of the ghats — grey mornings and evening rain rather than four solid months of it. The Cauvery comes up and the Krishna Raja Sagara gates open.

Still on: Mango and Jackfruit Mela (15 May – 5 Jun (usually))

Busy — Ashada Fridays on Chamundi Hill, school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it

• Festival

  Ashada Fridays on Chamundi Hill

  5 Jul – 15 Aug · usuallyReligious feastCrowdedClosures

  Four Fridays in the Ashada month bring hundreds of thousands up to the Chamundeshwari temple. Private cars are banned from the hill road on those days and everyone goes by shuttle bus. Source ↗

Still on: Monsoon on the plateau (1 Jun – 30 Sep (usually))

Busy — Ashada Fridays on Chamundi Hill, school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in August.

Still on: Monsoon on the plateau (1 Jun – 30 Sep (usually)), Ashada Fridays on Chamundi Hill (5 Jul – 15 Aug (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

• Festival

  Mysuru Dasara

  11–21 OctReligious feastCrowdedBook early

  Ten nights with the palace lit end to end, closing with the Jamboo Savari — the goddess on a golden howdah, walked five kilometres to Bannimantap behind caparisoned elephants. Book a room in July. Source ↗

Still on: Monsoon on the plateau (1 Jun – 30 Sep (usually))

Peak crowds — Mysuru Dasara, Dasara exhibition

• Opening

  Dasara exhibition

  1 Oct – 15 Jan · usuallySummer season opensCrowded

  The fairground at Doddakere Maidan opens with Dasara and stays up for months afterwards — stalls, rides and a stage, and the one part of the festival that outlasts the crowds. 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: Mysuru Dasara (11–21 Oct)

Peak crowds — Dasara exhibition, Diwali

• Season

  Clear season

  15 Nov – 28 FebDry season

  Cool mornings, dry evenings and the palace floodlights on without a haze in front of them. It is also when the day trips out to Bandipur and Nagarhole actually see something.

Still on: Dasara exhibition (1 Oct – 15 Jan (usually)), Diwali (15 Oct – 15 Nov (usually))

Peak crowds — Dasara exhibition, Winter break in India

Nothing new starts in December.

Still on: Dasara exhibition (1 Oct – 15 Jan (usually)), Clear season (15 Nov – 28 Feb)