Fifteen days after Diwali, on the full moon of Kartik, Varanasi lights every step of every ghat with clay lamps. The estimates run to a million and nobody has ever counted properly. It is called the Diwali of the gods, and for one evening the entire riverfront becomes a single continuous line of light.
It is also, without question, the most crowded night of the year, and the gap between a well-planned Dev Deepawali and a badly planned one is enormous.
What the night actually looks like
Lighting begins at dusk and moves along the river rather than all at once, so from a boat you watch the line of flame travel the length of the ghats. The regular Dashashwamedh aarti runs alongside it on a larger scale, with more priests and more lamps. By nine the river is full of floating diyas.
Booking and crowds
Every riverside hotel in the city sells out, and the ones that remain roughly double their rates in the final month. Boats are booked out weeks in advance and prices on the night itself are several times normal. The lanes near Dashashwamedh become effectively one-way on foot.
- Book accommodation eight to twelve weeks ahead, twelve for a riverside room
- Reserve the boat at the same time as the hotel, not later
- Expect to walk the final stretch - vehicles cannot approach the main ghats
- Plan to be in position by 4.30 p.m. for a 5.30 start
- Agree a meeting point with your guide, because phone networks struggle under the crowd
I have worked eleven of these. The moment the lamps reach the far ghats and the whole river is lit at once still stops me every year.
Shreyansh Singh, Guest Relations
Frequently asked
On Kartik Purnima, the full moon of the Kartik month, fifteen days after Diwali. That falls in November and the exact date moves each year, so confirm it before booking flights.
Not essential, but it is the difference between seeing the ghats and seeing the spectacle. From the steps you see your own ghat and a wall of people. From the water you see the entire lit riverfront.
