Kerala is always serene, always worth and always enjoyable. It remains almost same all the year round. And every time you can find a reason or two to go for a trip there. But this March there are not just one or couple, but ten reasons to go to different parts of Kerala. Apparently, there are perhaps more, but I have shortlisted ten for you. These are all temple festivals of Kerala. Temple festivals of Kerala are not like ones in the north. They are more elaborate and ritualistic. Most of them have elephants involved, which make them very beautiful. A great ensemble of Kerala's culture. Choose yours… Parade of offerings to Bhagavathy One of the most vibrant festivals of Kerala, the Chettikulangara Bharani offers arresting visuals and showcases the cultural richness of the state. An a
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The month starts with Basant Panchami today and the day also marks the start of two premier yearly events in the NCR region- Surajkund International Crafts Mela 2017 started today at Surajkund in Faridabad on the Delhi-Haryana border. While in the heart of Delhi 19th Bharat Rang Mahotsav, India's biggest theatre festival also started. These both are much sought for events by the art & culture enthusiasts. Surajkund Mela comes right at the nick of spring. With dates fixed for every year (February 1-15) , it makes easier for travellers to plan. A marvellous mix of handicrafts, folk arts and folk dances makes it a crowd puller. With lots of food stalls representing different states, it has lot more to offer. Hosted by Haryana Tourism, this fair also has a large entertainment value....
Read MoreMissing the chill this year, isn’t so? Nevertheless, festivities are on. New year comes with a number of festivals celebrating India’s dance and musical traditions. One among them Swathi Sangeethotsvam has already started last night. So, one might have plenty of options to travel from skiing to sun bathing at beach, but there is still always more to do. This month also has Makar Sakranti (14th January), considered to be one of the most auspicious days of the year and also an occasion of many travels and pilgrimages. Bringing you the selected few events for this month. Mamallapuram Dance Festival Mamallapuram has retained its fame in stone, thanks to the great contribution of Pallava artisans. It is among the most outstanding examples of Dravidian art and architecture and a jewel in
Read MoreIndian Accent continues to be on top of the list of most popular restaurants in India for another year in running. Well, nothing official about it but this list is based on user reviews on popular reviewing site TripAdvisor. TripAdvisor compiles list based on user reviews and updates them annually according to user ratings. It seems that Indian Accent at Friends Colony in New Delhi has continued to maintain its love affair with foodies. But besides this top position this list has seen a lot of upheaval in past one year. Four from the last list have lost their place and consequently there are four new entrants this year. New in this list but already known names. Goa lost one place but than there was another one from Goa to get entry. NCR continues to have its hold in the list with four e
Read MoreHope demonetisation has not affected your travel plans for the year end because coming months are full of lots of events and festivals. My post has already got a few days late due to many reasons. This month brings most of the enjoyment. Colourful winter and much awaited Christmas and New Year holiday. Perhaps the most traveled time of the year. Many things to plan and enjoy. Travel for snowfalls in high mountains to a beach dive in faraway south. Many things happening such as change in venue of Sunburn festival this year. Being already into month Konark festival in Odisha and Hornbill festival in Nagaland have already started but still lot many happenings to catch up. Still we have much lined up here: The Hornbill of Nagaland The Hornbill festival held in the first week of December sho
Read MoreIt is one of the most beautiful moons of the year. Correspondingly, this is one of the holiest month of the year- Kartik. Rich in festivals- including some world-famous ones on and around Kartik Purnima (full moon day). Interestingly these festivals are spread throughout the country. That also makes it one of the best months to travel. Weather generally remains clear and winter is yet to make some ground. Many people even like to travel to hills during this month to have some good views of snow-clad peaks in blue skies. For those who want a pretext, here is a list of top 10 travel moments of the month of November The charm of Pushkar The Pushkar Cattle Fair is one of the largest in India and the only one of its kind in the entire world. During the fair, Lakhs of people from rural Ind
Read MoreIndia’s festive season officially underway and will continue for more than a couple of months. This is time for one big festival which is celebrated in various parts of India in various ways- from Bengal to Gujarat and Kullu to Mysore. Time for some devotional travel. Actually this also brings to start season of India’ some well-known music festivals. Let’s have a look at some of the top events for travel in this month. Ramlila of Ramnagar at Varanasi This is one of the holiest of Indian cities as per hindu mythology. Varanasi has always been a magnet for the spiritual, the religious, for holy seers and for the hippies. During the ten days of the Dussehra, the city becomes famous for its Ramlila, often considered to be the one of the oldest and perhaps grandest ramlila in world. Fift
Read MoreThis post is already late than it was really intended to because of poor health and usual month-end chaos of pending works. Monsoon has already peaked up in most parts of India. Its again the time of the year to enjoy two things specifically- boat races in Kerala and monastic festivals in Ladakh. But there is still much more besides this, and that includes many religious festivals, few cultural occasions and a couple of pilgrimages. Monsoons might soak you up but it is still a time good enough to travel and enjoy some fun-soaked moments. My top picks for the month. And as I said, I am already late to post this, hence I am excluding Hariyali Amavasya at Udaipur, which was on 2nd August and which in my opinion should have been the pick of the month, an excellent and enjoyable event to soak y...
Read MoreIts monsoon time. Bit late this year again like last year, but trying to cover the peninsular India, just in nick of time. Time for some romance and some adventure. Actually brave ones find this the perfect time to hit the roads. Schools are open, hence the official holiday season ends, but not for the diehards. Besides, there are many festivals in the line-up. There are many places like Ladakh which can be visited just at this time of the year. My Top 10 list of ideas for this July…. Embark on Amarnath Yatra One of India’s most famous annual pilgrimages, to what is considered as one of the holiest shrines in Hinduism. The Amarnath cave is surrounded by snowy mountains, situated at an altitude of 3,888 m (12,756 ft), about 141 km from Srinagar. The cave itself is covered with snow most
Read MoreThis post is couple of days or more late, but still worth perhaps. Its the Monsoon time. Kerala will be receiving it in a few days, although it is already late by a week. Rest of India will be patiently waiting for its turn sweltering in humid heat until then. But it is still the vacation time for the most parts of India and hill stations will be packed of tourists. Besides the routine trips, have a look at the some of the other ideas for travel this month that I can recollect. 1. Boat race season kicks off at Champakkulam The snake boat race of Kerala or the vallamkali (boat race) is not just an event that lasts for a few hours or a day. Rather, it is a phenomenon the impact of which will last for a lifetime. In Kerala, the season of boat races starts with the famous Champakkulam Mo
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