Onam

Onam

Onam

The Homecoming

Kochi

23 - 26 August 2026

23 - 26 August 2026

optional night to 27 August

Kerala's harvest festival is built around a homecoming. Mahabali ruled so well that the gods grew nervous and sent him beneath the earth, granting him one wish: to rise once a year and see his people happy.

Kerala's harvest festival is built around a homecoming. Mahabali ruled so well that the gods grew nervous and sent him beneath the earth, granting him one wish: to rise once a year and see his people happy.

The Visits

What You Will Witness

01

The Onam story, in Kathakali

The week opens with the myth itself at the lakeside: the chutti artist building the green-and-red mask over half an hour, then Mahabali and Vamana playing out to chenda and maddalam.

01

The Onam story, in Kathakali

The week opens with the myth itself at the lakeside: the chutti artist building the green-and-red mask over half an hour, then Mahabali and Vamana playing out to chenda and maddalam.

01

The Onam story, in Kathakali

The week opens with the myth itself at the lakeside: the chutti artist building the green-and-red mask over half an hour, then Mahabali and Vamana playing out to chenda and maddalam.

02

The Aranmula snake-boat race

On the Pamba, a 500-year-old offering to the Parthasarathi temple. Snake boats up to 120 feet, a hundred oarsmen each, racing to the boat-songs, watched from reserved seats on the bank.

02

The Aranmula snake-boat race

On the Pamba, a 500-year-old offering to the Parthasarathi temple. Snake boats up to 120 feet, a hundred oarsmen each, racing to the boat-songs, watched from reserved seats on the bank.

02

The Aranmula snake-boat race

On the Pamba, a 500-year-old offering to the Parthasarathi temple. Snake boats up to 120 feet, a hundred oarsmen each, racing to the boat-songs, watched from reserved seats on the bank.

03

The royal parade at Tripunithura

On Uthradam, the eve of the feast (25 August), the old Kochi royal seat comes alive: caparisoned elephants to panchavadyam, flower-carpets thirty feet wide, women dancing the Thiruvathirakali in white and gold.

03

The royal parade at Tripunithura

On Uthradam, the eve of the feast (25 August), the old Kochi royal seat comes alive: caparisoned elephants to panchavadyam, flower-carpets thirty feet wide, women dancing the Thiruvathirakali in white and gold.

03

The royal parade at Tripunithura

On Uthradam, the eve of the feast (25 August), the old Kochi royal seat comes alive: caparisoned elephants to panchavadyam, flower-carpets thirty feet wide, women dancing the Thiruvathirakali in white and gold.

04

The 500 painted tigers of Thrissur

The image you take home. At Swaraj Round, more than 500 men painted as tigers dance through the maidan before crowds in the tens of thousands, drums you feel in your chest. From a reserved, shaded vantage.

04

The 500 painted tigers of Thrissur

The image you take home. At Swaraj Round, more than 500 men painted as tigers dance through the maidan before crowds in the tens of thousands, drums you feel in your chest. From a reserved, shaded vantage.

04

The 500 painted tigers of Thrissur

The image you take home. At Swaraj Round, more than 500 men painted as tigers dance through the maidan before crowds in the tens of thousands, drums you feel in your chest. From a reserved, shaded vantage.

05

The Thiruvonam Onasadya

The feast at the centre of it all: twenty-six dishes on a banana leaf, eaten by hand - what all of Kerala sits down to on the same day.

05

The Thiruvonam Onasadya

The feast at the centre of it all: twenty-six dishes on a banana leaf, eaten by hand - what all of Kerala sits down to on the same day.

05

The Thiruvonam Onasadya

The feast at the centre of it all: twenty-six dishes on a banana leaf, eaten by hand - what all of Kerala sits down to on the same day.

FAQ’s

Questions

What you need to know before you cross the threshold.

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Subscribe for thoughtfully curated experiences and upcoming journeys.

By subscribing you agree to with our Privacy Policy and provide consent to receive updates from our company.

Deorhi™ by The Times of India

Subscribe for thoughtfully curated experiences and upcoming journeys.

By subscribing you agree to with our Privacy Policy and provide consent to receive updates from our company.

Deorhi™ by The Times of India