Jaipur Travel Guide

Jaipur Festivals

The festivals of Jaipur are as lively and as colorful as the Pink City. People of all ages actively participate in these festivals with great fervour and enthusiasm. The festivals and fairs in Jaipur reflect the popular culture and traditional practices associated with these festivals. Fairs and festivals in Jaipur are great sources of amusement as they include processions, folk dances and other sources of entertainment.
Fair and festivals in Jaipur contribute a good lot to the overall tour package. The fairs and festivals of Jaipur are very characteristic of the local culture and are celebrated with the same zeal and pomposity as they were celebrated during the times of the maharajas. From tourists point of view the occasions are quite beneficiary as they provide useful insights of the people and the city. Jaipur city is the right place for a visit and Jaipur fairs and festivals are right times to be there

Gangaur festivals:-
The Gangaur, is the colourful and most important local festival in Jaipur, Rajasthan, celebrated every year during the Hindu month of Chaitra (March - April).
Gangaur's first word 'Gan' is a synonym for lord Shiva and 'Gaur' stands for 'Gauri' or Goddess Parvati, the consort of Lord Shiva and a symbol of conjugal bliss and marital happiness. Gauri is the epitome of perfection and spousal love which is because, young girls adorned in their best clothes pray for a spouse of their choice, while married women do so for the welfare, health and long life of their spouses and a happy married life

Teej festival is celebrated during the arrival of rainy season, every year in the Hindu Month of Shravan (August). This festival is also dedicated to the Goddess Parvati.The tradition is that females both girls and women adorn themselves in colourful leharia sarees or costumes, and offer puja to Goddess Parvati and prayed for conjugal bliss and happiness. Many couples come to the city, singing and dancing, on bullock carts, camel carts, and open tractor-trailers and villagers come to watch it in large numbers and buy knick-knacks from the stalls on the footpaths of the main bazars

Donkey fair:-
Held in October, the Donkey fair is one of the well known festivals in Sanganer. Over the years the festival have lost its vigour on Indian festival calender, but Organization like All-India Donkey Development Mela Committee with the support of Jaipur Municipal Corporation, the State Department of Animal Husbandry and a voluntary group "Help in Suffering" are promoting and celeberating the festival with full zeal.
Just like Camel festival, lot of donkeys from all over India are brought here for buying and selling. The donkey races and sports are organized for the merriment of people. Recently camels and horses have also been added to the shopping list with many visitors even feeling that the horses are fast establishing a dominant position in the 500-year old fair's donkey tradition.

Makar Sakranti (January 14)
Celebrated on the 14th of January, every year with traditional fervor, the devotees take a holy dip in the tank at Galtaji. This is also the day of kites at Jaipur. The activity has become a craze amongst the citizens. You will hardly find a school kid over 10 or 12 in the walled city who does not know flying kites. The phenomenon starts well before the Makar Sakranti day. And continues even after the festival. But on this day, it is a treat to watch the skyline of the Pink City. An Unforgettable experience.

Shitla Ashtami (March - April)
This festival locally called as Basoda, is celebrated to ward off the dreaded disease of small fox. The most famous fair is held at the Shitla Mata temple in Chaksu, people gather here to pray and celebrate.

Elephant Festivals
The elephants enthrall the spectators on the day of the colorful festival of Holi at Chaugan stadium. Beautifully decorated elephants assemble for a royal procession. Elephant polo, the races etc. are part of the festival.