Best Festivals to Visit in Pakistan: A Year-Round Guide

The best festivals to visit in Pakistan, if you are choosing a few, are the Shandur Polo Festival for spectacle and setting, Basant in Lahore for atmosphere, the Urs of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar in Sehwan for something unlike anywhere else, and the Kalash festivals for culture, though those come with a serious safety caveat. Guru Nanak's birthday at Nankana Sahib and the Lahore Literary Festival round out a good year.

This is a ranked list of festivals worth planning a trip around, not every fair in the country. Dates for many of them move, either with the lunar calendar or year by year, so each entry says what is fixed and what to confirm. For a month-by-month view, see our experiences page.

1. Shandur Polo Festival

This is the festival most worth travelling for. Teams from Chitral and Gilgit-Baltistan play freestyle polo at the Shandur Polo Ground, at about 3,700 m the highest polo ground in the world. Shandur is on the border of Chitral and Ghizer, and there is a tented camping village, folk music and dancing around the matches.

The festival was started in 1930 and is traditionally held in early July, though the 2026 edition ran from 11 to 13 June. That is a good example of why you must check dates each year. The ground is small, with low stone walls along the sides, so you sit very close to the action.

Each match lasts about an hour, in two halves with a ten-minute break for music and dance, and six players a side take the field. Preliminary matches decide who plays in the finals, and the championship is on the last day. Teams from Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral both bring a large following, so the atmosphere is partisan and loud.

Practical points: the altitude is high, nights are cold even in summer, and accommodation is basic camping or in villages on either side. Read our Shandur Polo Festival guide for routes from Gilgit and Chitral. The Chitral side passes through areas covered by UK advice, so see the safety notes below.

2. Basant in Lahore

Basant, the spring kite festival, returned to Lahore in February 2026 after roughly two decades of being banned. It was held from 6 to 8 February under new rules that allow only thread string, set kite-flying zones and require protective wires on motorbikes. Lahore was the only city in Punjab to hold it.

It was not without cost. At least 17 people died over the three days, most in falls from roofs, and a court later asked for figures on injuries. Basant 2027 is expected in late January, before Ramadan begins on 8 February, with final dates to be announced by the Punjab government.

If you go, book a hotel or a rooftop invitation early, keep clear of streets under kite lines, and never stand on a roof edge. Our Basant in Lahore guide covers where visitors watch from.

3. Urs of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar, Sehwan Sharif

The annual Urs at the shrine in Sehwan, Sindh, is the most intense festival on this list: devotees, drumming and the dhamal trance dance around the shrine. Hundreds of thousands were expected at the 774th Urs in February 2026, which officials announced for 9 to 11 February, with over 5,000 police and 300 Rangers deployed.

The Urs follows the Islamic calendar (18 to 20 Shaban), so it moves about eleven days earlier each Gregorian year. Confirm dates locally, since one source listed a different date range for 2026.

This is not a relaxed festival. It is dense, hot and very crowded, and security is heavy because the shrine was attacked in 2017. It suits experienced travellers, ideally with a local host. See our Sehwan Sharif Urs guide.

4. Guru Nanak's birthday at Nankana Sahib

The Gurpurab of Guru Nanak, celebrated at Gurdwara Janam Asthan where he was born, is the largest Sikh gathering in Pakistan. It falls on 24 November in 2026. Pilgrims from India travel on visas issued under the 1974 protocol, which limits numbers.

The town is far busier than usual around the date, so expect crowds and check access arrangements locally before you travel. Our Nankana Sahib guide covers how to get in.

5. Kalash festivals

The Kalash people celebrate three main festivals: Chilam Joshi in mid-May (13 to 16 May), Uchal in August during the harvest, and Chawmos at the winter solstice, roughly 7 to 22 December. They involve song, dance and new clothes, and are the reason many people visit Bumburet, Rumbur and Birir.

Check the safety picture first. The UK government advises against all travel to Chitral city via the N45 from Mardan and to the Kalash valleys. Some Pakistani visitors still go, but you should check local news and police advice, and overseas visitors should know that going against their government's advice can void travel insurance. Our Kalash Valley guide has more on the culture and access.

6. Lahore Literary Festival

The 14th Lahore Literary Festival ran at the Alhamra Arts Centre from 6 to 8 February 2026, with over 60 sessions on subjects from politics and history to climate. It is held in February and is the easiest festival to visit because it sits inside a city with hotels and restaurants. Check the festival website for the next dates. Read our Lahore Literary Festival guide.

7. Baisakhi at Hasan Abdal

Sikh pilgrims gather at Gurdwara Panja Sahib in Hasan Abdal in mid-April for Baisakhi. Pakistan issued about 2,800 visas to Indian pilgrims for Baisakhi in April 2026. Outside the festival the site is visited year-round, and our Panja Sahib guide explains what to expect.

More festivals by region

Beyond this list, there are smaller regional festivals worth knowing about. See our guides to the festivals of Gilgit-Baltistan, festivals in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and festivals of Punjab for those.

A festival calendar for the year

If you would rather plan by month, this is how the list falls, with the caveat that lunar and administrative dates shift.

1. January or February: Basant in Lahore (expected late January in 2027) and the Lahore Literary Festival, which was in early February in 2026. The Sehwan Urs was in February in 2026 and moves earlier each year.
2. April: Baisakhi at Hasan Abdal.
3. May: Chilam Joshi in the Kalash valleys.
4. June or July: Shandur Polo Festival.
5. August: Uchal in the Kalash valleys.
6. November: Guru Nanak's birthday at Nankana Sahib.
7. December: Chawmos in the Kalash valleys.

Winter festivals mean cold nights and shorter days, while the mountain festivals in summer have the reverse problem: altitude, sun and road closures. Pick the festival first and the route second, because the accommodation is what fills up.

How to plan around a festival

• Book early. Hotels near Shandur, in Lahore during Basant and in Sehwan fill or rise sharply in price.
• Confirm dates near the time. Festival dates are set by district administrations and can change.
• Expect crowds and patchy signal. Carry cash, water and a charged power bank.
• Dress modestly at religious festivals, and ask before photographing people.
• Keep spare days for weather and road closures in the mountains.

What we left off the list, and why

Some famous events do not make the ranking because a visitor cannot plan around them with confidence. The cattle and cultural fairs of Balochistan, including the Sibi Mela, are in a province where the UK advises against all travel. Several fairs in Swat and the rest of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa sit in districts with the same advice, and the security position there has worsened in 2026.

Smaller shrine fairs, such as the Mela Chiraghan in Lahore, are worth a visit if you are in the city at the right time, but their dates depend on the lunar calendar and local announcements, so we treat them as a bonus rather than a reason to travel. Our guides to Punjab's festivals cover them.

A final point for first-timers: a festival is a crowd event first. If you dislike crowds, choose the Literary Festival or a quiet visit to a gurdwara at another time of year, and keep the mountain festivals for when you are comfortable with rough conditions.

Which festival should you choose?

For a first festival trip, Shandur is the best combination of spectacle and scenery, if you can manage altitude and camping. For a city trip with easy logistics, Lahore in February gives you the Literary Festival or Basant. For deep cultural experience with the most challenge, Sehwan. Skip any festival in an area you have not checked against current advice. Our plan page can help you build a trip around one.

Frequently asked questions