Fairs and Festivals of India: A Guide to Cultural Celebrations

Fairs and
Festivals of India
By Mr. Amit Tiwari
Assistant Professor
Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management Gwalior
(An autonomous body under Ministry of Tourism, Govt. of India)

1/5/2021© Tiwari Amit, Asst. Professor,IITTM Gwl
2
Name The Elephant March
Place Trichur, Kerala
Time January
Significance A 3 day festival where 101
elegantly decorated and
beautifully ornamented
Elephants march from
Trichur to
Thiruvananthapuram

3
Name Lohri
Place Punjab, Himachal Pradesh
and Haryana
Time January
Significance This is the Harvest Festival
of North India celebrated
with Traditional Dhol Music
and Folk songs

4
Name Lohri
Place Punjab, Himachal Pradesh
and Haryana
Time January
Significance This is the Harvest Festival
of North India celebrated
with Traditional Dhol Music
and Folk songs

5
Name International Kite festival
Place Ahmedabad, Gujarat
Time January
Significance The Festival is to celebrate
Uttarayan to mark the end
of winter season.

6
Name Pongal
Place Tamil Nadu
Time January
Significance It is the Harvest Festival of
Tamil Nadu

7
Name Bikaner Camel Festival
Place Rajasthan
Time January
Significance Festival celebrates the
Camels of the desert which
are a great attraction for
tourists from all over the
world.

8
Name Republic Day Parade
Place New Delhi
Time January
Significance Held on 26th Jan every
year to celebrate the
Indian Republic

9
Name Desert Festival
Place Rajasthan
Time February
Significance 3 days festival celebrating
the Desert lifestyle with
local cultural events like
dance, music, camel race,
etc.

10
Name Nagaur Fair
Place Rajasthan
Time February
Significance This is second biggest
cattle fair of Rajasthan

11
Name Taj Mahotsav
Place Agra, Uttar Pradesh
Time February
Significance It is a 10-day event to celebrate
the beauty of Taj Mahal with
Dance, Music and other cultural
performances

12
Name TaKhajuraho Dance
Festival
Place Madhya Pradesh
Time February
Significance This festival celebrates the
glory and extravagant
beauty of Khajuraho
Temples

13
Name Elephant Festival
Place Jaipur, Rajasthan
Time March
Significance Elephant Races, Elephant
Polo matches and Man vs
Elephant Tug of War are
held in this festival to
celebrate the Iindian
elephants

14
Name Mewar Festival
Place Udaipur, Rajasthan
Time March
Significance The festival celebrates the
arrival of Spring

15
Name Maha Shivratri
Place All over India
Time March
Significance The festival is to worship
God Shiva

16
Name Goa Carnival
Place Panaji Goa
Time March
Significance Floats, Parades, Music and
Dance bring the streets of
Goa to life during this
festival

17
Name Thrissur Pooram
Place Thrissur, Kerala
Time April
Significance It is celebrated at the
Vadakkumnathan Temple.
The elephant procession
(Kudamattom) is the main
attraction of the festival.

18
Name Gangaur Festival
Place Thrissur, Kerala
Time April
Significance It is celebrated at the
Vadakkumnathan Temple.
The elephant procession
(Kudamattom) is the main
attraction of the festival.

19
Name Gangaur Festival
Place Rajasthan
Time April
Significance Festival is to celebrate and
worship goddess Gauri.

20
Name Ram Navami
Place All over India
Time April
Significance Celebrate the birth of Lord
Rama

21
Name Baisakhi
Place Punjab
Time April
Significance This is the Punjabi New
Year Festival

22
Name Buddha Poornima
Place India
Time May
Significance To celebrate the birth of
Lord Buddha

23
Name Ganga Dussehra
Place Varanasi and Haridwar
Time June
Significance Celebrate the occasion of
Gangavataran (Descent of
Ganga on earth).

24
Name Janmashtami
Place India
Time August
Significance It is to celebrate the birth
of Lord Krishna.

25
Name Teej
Place Rajasthan
Time August
Significance The festival commemorates
the union of Lord Shiva and
Goddess Parvati

26
Name Raksha Bandhan
Place India
Time August
Significance It celebrates the
relationship between a
brother and a sister.

27
Name EID UL FITR
Place India
Time Varies every year
Significance The festival marks end of
the holy month of Ramazan
for Muslims all over the
world.

28
Name Onam
Place Kerala
Time September
Significance Homecoming of the
legendry king Mahabali is
celebrated in this festival

29
Name Durga Pooja
Place West Bengal
Time September
Significance Bengalis all over the
country worship the divine
power "Shakti" in the form
of Goddess Durga

30
Name Ganesh Chaturthi
Place Maharashtra
Time September
Significance The day marks the
beginning of a 10-day
festival were Lord Ganesh
is worshipped with great
love.

31
Name Marwar Festival
Place Jodhpur
Time October
Significance Celebrated during the full
moon, the Marwar Festival
is dedicated to the folk
Heroes of Rajasthan

32
Name Dussehra
Place India
Time October
Significance Marks the end of Navaratri
and victory of Lord Rama
over Ravana

33
Name Diwali
Place India
Time October
Significance The festival of Light to
mark of return of Lord Ram
to Ayodhya

34
Name Hampi Festival
Place Hampi, Karnataka
Time November
Significance Also known as Vijaya Utsav
of Karnataka to celebrate
the grandeur of Ancient
Vijayanagar Empire whose
capital was Hampi.

35
Name Ganga Mahotsav
Place Varanasi
Time November
Significance Cultural Dance and Music
performances along
thousands of Diyas (Oil
lamps) are the highlights of
this festival

36
Name Chatth Puja
Place Bihar
Time November
Significance Worship of Sun

37
Name Guru Nanak Jayanti
Place Punjab
Time November
Significance Birth Anniversary
celebrations of Guru
Nanak, the founder of Sikh
religion

1/5/2021
38
© Tiwari Amit, Asst. Professor,IITTM Gwl
Name Christmas
Place India
Time December
Significance To celebrate the birth of
Jesus Christ.

39
Name Kochi Carnival
Place Kochi, Kerala
Time December
Significance celebrated in the last 10
days of December to
celebrate the new year

Let us understand ..
40
Sources of Recreation in the field of Tourism

Recreation
41
Learning Objectives
• Differentiate between recreation, outdoor recreation, adventure
tourism, and nature-based tourism
• Describe the significance, size, and economic contribution of this
sector to the overall tourism industry in BC
• Identify key industry organizations in recreation, outdoor
recreation, and adventure tourism
• Classify different subsectors of recreation, outdoor recreation,
and adventure tourism
• Recognize the unique challenges facing recreation, outdoor
recreation, and adventure tourism in BC

Overview
42
Recreation can be defined as the pursuit of leisure activities
during one’s spare time (Tribe, 2011) and can include vastly
different activities such as golfing, sport fishing, and rock climbing.
Defining recreation as it pertains to tourism, however,
is more challenging.

Outdoor recreation
• Outdoor recreation can be defined as “outdoor
activities that take place in a natural setting, as
opposed to a highly cultivated or managed
landscape such as a playing field or golf course”
(Tourism BC, 2013, p. 47)

adventure tourism
• adventure tourism is “a trip that includes at
least two of the following three elements:
physical activity, natural environment, and
cultural immersion” (UNWTO, 2014,
p.12). Examples of adventure tourism in BC
include river rafting, helicopter skiing, and rock
climbing.

Take a Closer Look: UNWTO
Global Report
• The Global Report on Adventure Tourism by
UNWTO offers an in-depth analysis of the global
adventure travel sector. It can be found at
http://affiliatemembers.unwto.org/publication/
global-report-adventure-tourism

Adventure tourism as a activity
• Adventure tourism can be “soft” or
“hard.” Differentiating between the two is somewhat
subjective, but is loosely based on the level of
experience required, the level of fitness required,
and the degree to which the participant is exposed to
risk (UNWTO, 2014)
• one that overlaps with the definitions of outdoor
recreation and adventure tourism, is nature-based
tourism, which refers to “those tourism experiences
that are directly or indirectly dependent on the
natural environment” (Tourism BC, 2005b,

Land-Based: Golf Courses and Resorts
• A 2009 economic impact study found that more
than six million Canadians participate in the
game of golf each year, making this sport the
number one outdoor recreational activity in
Canada based on participation. Golf also directly
employs more than 155,000 people and
contributes more than $11 billion directly to
Canada’s gross domestic product.

Mountain Resorts and Nordic
Centres
• Resorts in British Columbia range from smaller
eco-lodges to large ski areas. Mountain resorts
and nordic centres are part of the larger resort
tourism sector, which in 2004 was valued at $1.9
billion (Tourism BC, 2011c).

Ski/Snowboard Mountain Resorts
• BC’s many world-class facilities and high-quality snow
conditions provide mass appeal for downhill skiing and
snowboarding. Mountain resorts in BC can be separated into
two principal categories: destination resorts and regional
resorts.
• Destination mountain resorts are often significantly larger
and offer a greater range of amenities such as on mountain
accommodation and food services; they are also generally
marketed to out-of-area and international visitors.
• Examples of a destination resort would include Whistler
Blackcomb Ski Resort. On the other hand, regional
mountain resorts are usually smaller in size and capacity,
have fewer amenities, and often cater more directly to the
local community (Tourism BC, 2011c) such as Whitewater
Ski Resort in the Kootenay Rockies.

Nordic Centres
• Nordic skiing, also commonly known as cross-
country skiing, is a low-risk, low-impact winter
sport popular across Canada. It differs from
backcountry skiing in that participants ski on
groomed trails typically maintained as part of an
established facility (Cross Country BC, n.d.).

Off-Road Recreational Vehicles
• An off-road recreational vehicle (ORV) is any
vehicle designed to be driven off road that is not
included within any other vehicle classification
framework. This includes snowmobiles, all-
terrain vehicles (ATVs), and dirt bikes (British
Columbia Ministry of Forest, Lands and Natural
Resource Operations, 2014). ORV use is
recognized as a considerable contributor to the
BC economy, owing primarily to recreational
users, but also from tourist visits.

Cycling
• Cycling is a popular recreational activity in BC
thanks to a variety of terrain, spectacular
scenery, and favourable weather conditions, with
approximately 44% of residents
participating each year (Tourism BC,
2013). Cycling also attracts out-of-province
visitors. One study from 2008 reported that out
of 5.6 million Canadians who travelled to BC over
a two-year period, almost one million (17%) had
participated in a cycling activity (Tourism BC,
2009).

Camping and Hiking
• In 2012, over 19.3 million people visited BC
provincial parks, including 16.8 million day
visitors, many of whom used the parks for hiking
and exploration in addition to picnics, swimming,
and other outdoor activities. Of these visitors,
2.3 million were overnight campers, generating
$15.5 million in user fees, with an average guest
satisfaction rating of 82% (BC Parks, 2012). As
discussed in Chapter 3, there are also a number
of private camping providers in the province.

Wildlife Viewing
• it is not surprising that there is a thriving wildlife
viewing industry in BC. This includes whale, bird,
and bear watching as well as travelling to view
the northern lights or alpine flowers (CTC,
2007). One study conducted by the Canadian
Tourism Commission established that within BC,
approximately 37% of tourists took part in
wildlife viewing while visiting. Significantly, for
13% of visitors,

Water-Based Recreation and
Tourism
• Water-based recreation and tourism in BC is extensive
and varied. The coastline of more than 25,000
kilometres in length provides ideal opportunities for
recreation and tourism (BC Adventure,
n.d.). Activities include scuba diving, boat tours,
sport fishing, paddle sports, and more. Following is an
overview of a few core water-based activities offered
by BC tourism operators, as well as a brief description
of their economic contributions and related industry
organizations.
•

Scuba Diving
• BC waters offer scuba divers a rich diversity of
marine life such as giant Pacific octopuses, wolf
eels, sixgill sharks, soft corals, and cloud
sponges. As well, a variety of dive sites are
available, including marine parks, protected
natural areas, sunken naval vessels, artificial
reefs, historic wrecks, and even a submerged
fuselage of a Boeing 737 airliner (Dive Industry
Association of BC, n.d.).

Sport Fishing and Lodges
• There is a long and rich history of sport fishing in
BC. Anglers are drawn to the province’s tidal
waters (for salmon and halibut) and to
freshwater rivers and lakes (for trout, steelhead,
and sturgeon). The annual rate of recreational
participation is significant; a 2009 study
estimated that there are nearly 600,000 anglers
(either fresh or saltwater) in any given year in BC
(Tourism BC,

Thank you
58
Do subscribe Gyandhara Knowledge for all
segments link mentioned as under this would be a tool for learning further
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEnkfpF0NkgBsxjx_Gy1keA

The lecture video sessions (Few) on different tourism related topic
are available at YouTube Channel
GYANDHARA KNOWLEDGE FOR ALL SEGMENT
https://www.youtube.c
om/watch?v=Mn-
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https://www.youtu
be.com/watch?v=6s
sy6HEvvIM&t=61s
https://www.youtube.
com/watch?v=gzMNQ9
7V1wU&t=41s
1/5/2021Amit Tiwari, Asst Professor, IITTM, Gwalior

Fairs and Festivals of India: A Guide to Cultural Celebrations

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