Festivals and Events
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Republic Day
The most spectacular parade is along Rajpath in New Delhi.
http://www.travelgodelhi.com/delhi-festival/rep... -
Garden Tourism Festival
A visual feast for visitors and for the horticulturally inclined.
http://www.delhitourism.nic.in/publicpage/festi... -
Suraj Kund Crafts Mela
A 14-day festival with craft exhibitions and open-air folk dancing.
http://www.haryana-online.com/Culture/surajkund... -
Delhi Marathon
http://www.delhimarathon.com/ -
Holi
Holika Dahan is the traditional festival of colour celebrating the end of winter and the destruction of the demon Holika. A lot of fun as coloured water, watery clay and cattle dung are thrown around.
http://www.castleandking.com/north-india-tours/... -
Rama Navami
The birthday of the most cherished of Hindu hero-gods is celebrated all over India on the ninth day (navami means "nine") of the lunar month of Chatri.
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Independence Day
The Prime Minister gives a solemn speech from the ramparts of the Red Fort.
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Delhi Book Fair
Proceedings take place at the vast Pragati Maidan.
http://www.indiatradefair.com/ -
Dussehra
A significant Hindu festival celebrated by the burning of effigies in private back gardens, accompanied by far more elaborate bonfires in public places.
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Diwali
The festival of light is the most popular traditional Hindu festival. Carnival and firework time.
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Christmas
Delhi's year of festivities end with Christmas and New Year’s Eve when there are special programmes at most hotels and restaurants across the city.
Theatre, Cinema and Opera
Cinema ranks as the most popular form of entertainment for Indians, with the Mumbai film industry – ‘Bollywood’ – the largest in the world. There’s a range of cinemas and multiplexes in Delhi offering both Hindi potboilers and Hollywood blockbusters. Despite all efforts the theatre scene in the capital remains pretty dismal. There are a few groups and repertories in Delhi, but Bombay is very much the leader. This is even more surprising given the fact that the National School of Drama is located in Delhi. But still the few groups and repertory companies that are active are quite good, so do check them out. Some of the international hotels have discos or cabarets, at a price, and there are several venues for cultural programmes of Indian music and dance. A useful weekly booklet, Delhi Diary, has full entertainment listings and lots of other up-to-date tourist information. It’s available at hotels and bookshops.
Museums and Galleries
There are many museums in Delhi city to which you can go to experience the culture of Delhi for yourself. Some of the museums, which are definitely worth paying a visit are the National Museum, the Crafts Museum, the Gandhi Memorial Museums and the Nehru Museum. The National Museum (www.nationalmuseumindia.gov.in) is the largest museum in India and is located in central Delhi in Janpath. Its large array of exhibits depict the 5,000 years of Indian history. There are three floors in this museum, which have many exhibits arranged according to the era to which they belong. The Crafts Museum (http://delhigovt.nic.in/museum.asp) has a not-to-be-missed collection of crafts from across India, from toys to shrines, roof tiles to fishing traps and jewellery to puppets. The Gandhi Memorial Museums (http://delhigovt.nic.in/museum.asp) celebrate the life of Mahatma Gandhi, who’s venerated as one of the greatest of all men, in India and across the world. The Nehru Museum (http://delhigovt.nic.in/museum.asp) tells the story of another great national figure, Jawaharlal Nehru. The 1930s mansion, which houses the museum was his official residence.
For Children
Although India has more children of its own than almost any other country in the world, this is not the ideal destination, particularly for babies and small children, as there are very real health hazards. For older ones, just getting around can be an adventure. Auto- and cycle rickshaws will be great favourites and trains will also be popular, especially if you can still find a steam engine. The forts are sufficiently dramatic to avoid becoming boring old museums, particularly if you can find good details such as the staggered gates designed to stop a charging elephant or an infant maharaja’s cradles and toys. Delhi has several specially designed attractions such as the Bal Bhavan (http://nationalbalbhavan.nic.in/default.htm), an activity centre offering photography, performing arts, physical education, science and creative art. There’s also the National Children’s Museum and Aquarium (http://delhigovt.nic.in/museum.asp), Shankar’s International Dolls Museum (http://delhigovt.nic.in/museum.asp), zoological gardens and the Appu Ghar fairground.
