Known for its rich culture and tradition, Rajkot is the third largest city of Indian state of Gujarat.  The city is famous for hosting several cultural events and festivals. Rajkot is often referred as Rangilu Rajkot meaning colorful Rajkot and that could be seen in its colorful celebration of its festivals. Though Rajkot is rapidly growing into a multicultural city, it still continues to preserve its traditional customs and rituals. Festivals celebrated in Rajkot offers us insights of its rich cultures and tradition.

Navratri, the festival of nine nights, is the most charming festival of Gujarat. Being a part of Gujarat state, the city of Rajkot also celebrates Navratri with great fanfare. The festival is celebrated for nine days which witnesses daily prayers and other religious activities. The main attraction of Navratri festival is colorful Garba dance. Garba dance serves to be the main folk dance form of Gujarat state. It is mainly performed on the occasion of Navratri festival. People of all ages and different strata of society take part in this beautiful and charming Garba dance.

Kite festival is another prominent cultural event celebrated on the occasion of Makar Sankranti which usually falls on 14th January. On the occasion of festival people of Rajkot are seen flying there kites high in the sky. The blue sky of the city fills with thousand of colorful kites competing with each other.  Similar kind of festival are celebrated on large scale in Ahmedabad and other major cities of Gujarat. There are many other major festivals like holi, Dussera, and Deepawali which are celebrated in Rajkot with great religious fervor.

                                                     

Krishnapuram Palace:

Built in the 18th century, Krishnapuram Palace presents a beautiful architectural style of Kerala. This two storied historic structure was built by Marathnanda Varma, a king of Travancore. Crafted with typical Kerala feature of architecture including doomed windows, gabled windows and narrow corridor, the palace is mainly famous for its mural paintings. The palace has now been turned into a museum housing a fine collection of beautiful sculptures, paintings, antiques, bronzes and other artifacts.

Alleppey Beach:

Pathiramannal:

It is a small Island accessed by boat. The place is dotted with beautiful natural surroundings. It is an ideal place for the nature lover to explore beautiful surroundings. It also serves to be a perfect place for the bird watchers as numerous species of domestic and migratory birds can be spotted there.



St Andrew’s Church, Karumadi, Pandavan Rock, Edathua Church and Chavra Bhavan are other places of attraction situated in and around the town of Alleppey.

 How to get there:

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Guntur, the fourth largest city of the state of Andhra Pradesh, is known for its diverse culture. Festival is one of the vital parts of the culture and therefore the city of Guntur celebrates multi religious and multi-cultural festivals with equal zest. Along with the major festivals like Deepawali, Dussera, Holi etc Guntur also celebrates Id-ul-fitr and Christmas with great enthusiasm.  Apart from these important festivals Guntur also hosts some of its regional fairs and festivals with much pomp and show.

Mulathaneswaraswami Kalyanothsavam is five-day festival celebrated in the month of March-April at the temple of Tadikonda situated near Guntur. The festival is a prominent religious event and on the occasion of the festival devotees offers the coconut, flowers, fruits and betel leaves to the deity of the temple. Sri Narsimhaswami Kalyanothsavam is another major festival celebrated for 16 days in the month of March-April at Lakshami Narasimhaswami temple in Guntur. Hazart Sayed Bajit Shahi Aulia Urs is Muslim fair held every year in the month of Ramzan at Pedakani near Ramzan. The fair is visited by many Muslim devotees from far and wide. Sri Ramlingeswaraswami Lakshabilvarchana and Sri Ramakoti Mahothsvam are other major fairs and festivals celebrated full zest in Guntur.

Bikaner is a city in the state of Rajasthan, India. Rich in history and culture, the city of Bikaner serves to be a major tourist destination in the state. Bikaner is dotted with numerous historic forts, palaces, temples etc. These places of interest attract thousands of tourists from all over the globe. 

Junagarh Fort :
Built in 1593 by Raja Rai Singh, Junagarh Fort is key tourist attraction of Bikaner. The fort is perched at an altitude of about 700 ft and is easily visible from a distance. The fort wall measures about 987 m in length and it is fortified with 37 bastions. The fort also has a moat and two entrances.  Beautifully stone carving done in several palaces of the fort is the main highlight of this impressive structure. Anup Mahal, Rang Mahal, Hawa Mahal, Phool Mahal and Chandra Mahal are some of the palaces of Junagarh fort.


Lalgarh palace :
Lalgarh palace is another major attraction of Bikaner. It is located just 3 km away from Bikaner and is known for its beautiful architectural style and lattice work. This imposing structure was built by Maharaja Ganga Singh in memory of his father. A portion of this Palace has been turned in a heritage hotel by Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporations.



Mata Karni Temple :
Mata Karni Temple situated just 30 km south of Bikaner is a prominent place of worship in the region. It is over 600 year old temple and is dedicated to Mata Karni who is considered as one of the incarnations of goddess Durga. Camel research and breeding farm, Ganga Golden Jubilee Museum and Fort Museum are other places of attractions in Bikaner.

Rich in history and culture, the city of Jaisalmer is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the state of Rajasthan, India. Famous for its several historic monuments, structures and picturesque sand dunes, Jaisalmer has another interesting facet that make the city a special place to visit. Fairs & festivals of Jaisalmer are known for their cultural extravaganza. Jaisalmer celebrates several prominent festivals with great fanfare.

Jaisalmer Desert festival is the most important cultural festival of Jaisalmer. The festival is organized by Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation and is known for its myriads of cultural and entertainment activities. Jaisalmer Desert Festival serves to be a platform from where one can have the insights of rich culture and tradition of the people of the region. Beautifully adorned camels, colorful traditional attires of the people, attractive folk dance and songs are the main highlights of the desert festivals of Jaisalmer.

Jaisalmer celebrates many other major festivals celebrated in other parts of Rajasthan. Among other festivals celebrated in Jaisalmer the festival of Gangaur is prominent one. Holi and Dussera are other major festivals of Jaisalmer celebrated with much pomp and show. Colorful festivals of Jaisalmer attract thousands of tourists from all over the globe.