Surajkund Diwali Mela 2026: 300 craft stalls in Faridabad, October 23-26

The Haryana Tourism Department will hold the third Surajkund Diwali Mela at the Surajkund Mela Grounds in Faridabad from Friday 23 October to Monday 26 October 2026. Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini is to inaugurate the four-day fair on 23 October in the presence of Haryana's Heritage and Tourism Minister, Dr Arvind Sharma, and Union Minister Manohar Lal Khattar is expected at the closing ceremony on 26 October. The department announced the plans on 18 October, and arrangements were being finalised this week.

Surajkund is one of the best-known fairgrounds in north India. It is home to the Surajkund International Crafts Mela, held each year in January and February, which ran its 39th edition in early 2026; an earlier edition of that fair closed with more than 20 lakh visitors, according to official figures reported at the time. The Diwali Mela is a newer, shorter event on the same grounds, timed for the festive shopping season rather than the winter craft fair. By running a second event at the site each year, the state is using a venue that already draws large crowds to bring visitors back in a different season.

For travellers, the fair is a short trip from Delhi, Gurugram and Faridabad, and it offers something different from a mall or a city market: crafts, handloom and decor brought by makers from several states, regional food, and live folk performances in one place. For artisans and small sellers, a four-day fair in the week before Diwali puts their goods in front of buyers at the time of year when households spend most on gifts, lamps, decorations and clothes. The Swadeshi zone listed by the department signals the state's focus on locally made products.

The event also shows how Indian states are turning the festival calendar into a tourism draw. Fairs of this kind spread spending beyond hotels to craftspeople, food vendors, performers and local transport, which is why tourism departments organise them rather than leaving the season to private retail alone.

One detail remains open. Haryana Tourism had not published an entry ticket price for the Diwali Mela in the material available at the time of writing. Visitors should check the Haryana Tourism website before travelling. Ticket prices quoted online for the International Crafts Mela in February do not necessarily apply to this event.

Short-term: Visitors from the National Capital Region get a four-day festive fair in the run-up to Diwali, with crafts, food and performances. Traffic and crowds around Surajkund are likely to rise over the weekend of 24 and 25 October, so the listed bus services may be the easier way to reach the grounds.

Long-term: A Diwali edition alongside the established International Crafts Mela gives the Surajkund grounds two major events a year. If the third edition draws steady crowds, it strengthens the case for Haryana to keep building festival-based tourism around the site.

Who is affected: Artisans and handloom weavers who take stalls; folk performers; food vendors; residents and tourists in Delhi, Faridabad and Gurugram; and the Haryana Tourism Department, which runs the event.

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