Hindu festivals follow the Moon and the Sun, not the calendar on the wall, and the date that suits a family in Delhi is not always the date that suits a family in Houston or Sydney. Each festival has a rule that asks about one moment of the day: the Sun crossing a sign, the tithi at sunrise, in the afternoon, in the evening twilight, at midnight, or at moonrise. Because sunrise, sunset, moonrise and midnight are at different times in every city, the same rule can point to different days in different places. Karva Chauth, which depends on the moonrise, and Diwali, which depends on the evening after sunset, are the two festivals where this matters most.
This section works out the dates for each city from its own coordinates. The positions of the Sun and Moon come from the Swiss Ephemeris, the zodiac is sidereal with the Lahiri ayanamsa, and the rules are the Smarta ones that most published calendars follow, with lunar months counted from new Moon to new Moon. We checked the results against a widely used published panchang for five cities (New York, London, Toronto, Sydney and New Delhi) for 2026 and 2027. The method is described on the method page.
A note on trust: local temples and traditions sometimes keep a different day for a few festivals, such as Janmashtami or Ekadashi, where a Vaishnava community follows a stricter rule. These pages give the widely published date and, where it helps, the alternative. It is right to follow your own family or temple.
Each city page lists the major festivals and every monthly vrat for 2026 and 2027, with the puja and moonrise times for that city.
Each festival page has the rule used to fix the date and a table of dates and timings for all 49 cities.
These come round every month or fortnight. Each page lists every occurrence in 2026 and 2027 for five cities and points to the city pages for the rest.
Frequently asked questions
↳ Why is Diwali on a different day in different countries?
Diwali is fixed by the new Moon being in force in the evening after sunset. The new Moon is one instant for the whole world, but sunset is at a different time in each place, so in some years the new Moon arrives before sunset in one country and after sunset in another, and the civil date differs by a day.
↳ How are these festival dates calculated?
The dates are calculated from the Swiss Ephemeris with the Lahiri ayanamsa, using the sunrise, sunset, moonrise and midnight of each city. They follow the Smarta rules that most published calendars use, and were checked against a widely used published panchang for New York, London, Toronto, Sydney and New Delhi.
↳ Can I use these dates to plan a puja or a fast?
Yes, as a careful guide. Some festivals are kept on different days by different temples and traditions, for example Janmashtami (Smarta and ISKCON) and Ekadashi (Smarta and Vaishnava). If your family or temple keeps a particular day, it is right to follow them.
↳ My city is not listed. What can I do?
Use the any-city tool on this site. You type the town or city, choose the year, and it works out the same dates and times for that place, with its own time zone and daylight saving.
↳ Are the times in 12-hour or 24-hour format?
The times are in the 12-hour style, such as 7:35 pm, and in the local time of the city. When a window runs past midnight the table says next day after the end of the window.