Mayfung: Baltistan's Winter Fire Festival

The Mayfung festival is Baltistan's fire festival, held on the evening of 21 December, the winter solstice. Families light bonfires on rooftops and hillsides, and young people swing bundles of burning wood and sing to see off the longest night of the year. It is celebrated in villages across Baltistan, around Skardu, Shigar and Khaplu, and organised public events have been held with government support in recent years.

This guide explains what the festival means, what you will see, where to stand and what a December trip to Skardu involves.

What Mayfung means

The name is Balti: may means fire and fang, also written phang or fung, means to throw or to play. Mayfung is "playing with fire", or more literally throwing fire into the sky. You will also see it spelt May Fang and Mefang.

It falls on the winter solstice and is treated as the start of the Balti new year, Losar. From the next morning the days lengthen, which in a region where winter lasts close to half the year is worth marking.

Where does it come from?

Nobody can date it firmly, and the explanations you will hear in Baltistan differ.

• Bön. The most common account traces it to Bön, the religion of the region before Buddhism and Islam, and links it to the Tibetan Losar. In this telling the fire guards households against misfortune, natural disasters, spirits and jinns in the year ahead.
• A tyrant's death. A story told in Shigar says the fires celebrate the death of a cruel Maqpon ruler of Skardu, sometimes named as Abdal Khan. A writer in Pamir Times, citing the late historian Abbas Kazmi, dismisses this as a myth.
• Older than either. The same writer argues that the festival is about 2,000 years old and is simply a celebration of the turning year.

What is not disputed is that it survived the arrival of Islam and is still kept by Muslim families across Baltistan as a cultural, not a religious, occasion.

The public celebration has had a revival. A Pamir Times contributor credits the activist Ali Kazim Golden and the Baltistan Art Council with reviving it in 2012, and recent editions have been held with the support of the Gilgit-Baltistan government.

What happens on the night

On 21 December the sun sets in Skardu at about ten to five, earlier where mountains block the horizon. The festival begins as it gets dark.

1. Bonfires are lit on rooftops, in fields and on ridges above the villages, so that fires answer each other across the valley.
2. Children and teenagers carry torches, bundles of burning sticks, which they swing in circles and wave as they walk, singing traditional songs.
3. Music and dance follow. Sword dances and fire dances are performed at the larger gatherings, with fireworks and flying lanterns.
4. Families eat together. Dishes named for the occasion include prapu (also written parapo), marzan and balay; our Balti food guide covers the cuisine.

On 21 December 2025, Daily Times reported residents and officials carrying flaming logs through a night of bonfires and cultural performances. A traditional game called kopolo, from the Balti words for leather and ball, is also associated with the festival, though we could not confirm where or whether it is played each year.

Where to see Mayfung

Skardu town. An organised gathering is the easiest for a visitor. We could not confirm a fixed venue or programme for it, so ask your hotel on arrival where that year's event is being held.

Shigar and Khaplu. Both towns and the villages around them light their own fires. With no stage or programme, this is closer to the festival as it has always been, but you need a local host to know where to go, and the drive back may be on icy roads in the dark.

A literary side has grown up around the date as well. In January 2023 a Balti language society held a "Jashn-e-Mayfung" in Skardu with poetry readings and displays of traditional food.

Getting to Skardu in December

By air. Flights from Islamabad to Skardu operate in winter but depend on clear weather over the mountains, and cancellations are common. Do not book a tight return. See our guides to the Islamabad to Skardu flight and flight cancellations.

By road. The Babusar Pass is closed in winter, so the only road is the Karakoram Highway through Besham and Chilas, then the Skardu road along the Indus (Gilgit to Skardu is about 209 km). The UK government advises against all travel on the Karakoram Highway between Mansehra and Chilas; Pakistani travellers use it all year, but foreign-passport holders should check their own government's advice, because travelling against it can void insurance. Everyone should check for landslide and snow closures before setting out.

Allow at least two spare days either side of the 21st.

What a December night in Skardu is like

The long-term averages for December are a daytime high of 6.5°C and a night-time low of minus 5.6°C, and the record low for the month is minus 17.2°C. You will be standing outdoors after dark, so dress for the low figure:

• A down or heavy insulated jacket, thermal layers, gloves and a hat.
• Boots with a thick sole; frozen ground takes heat from your feet quickly.
• Clothes made of wool or cotton on the outside if you plan to stand near the fires. Sparks melt holes in nylon.
• A torch for the walk back.

Fewer hotels stay open in winter. Book ahead and ask what heating is provided. Our guides to Skardu in winter and Skardu hotels in winter go into detail, and the seasons guide compares December with the rest of the year.

Watching respectfully and safely

• Keep back from the torch swingers. The bundles shed burning embers.
• Ask before photographing people at close range, especially women and children at family fires.
• If a family invites you to their rooftop, accept the food you are offered.
• Do not join in with fire unless your hosts hand you a torch and show you how.

Is it worth planning a trip around?

For someone who already wants to see Baltistan in winter, yes. Mayfung is a real tradition, kept by the people who live there, and it gives a short trip a clear centre. Our Balti culture guide sets it in context.

For a first visit to Skardu, no. In late December Deosai is closed, the high lakes are frozen, flights are unreliable and the festival itself lasts one evening. Come in summer for the landscape, and keep Mayfung for a second trip.

Frequently asked questions