Diwali 2026 in Surat: Dates, Bestu Varas, Shopping and Cracker Rules

Diwali 2026 falls on Sunday, 8 November, and in Surat the festival is really a five-day stretch that ends with Bestu Varas, the Gujarati New Year, on Tuesday 10 November and Bhai Bij on Wednesday 11 November. The fortnight before is the time for shopping, exhibitions and sweets. After Diwali night the city goes quiet in a way few big Indian cities do, because its diamond and textile trades shut for their annual break. Firecrackers are restricted to a two-hour window on Diwali night under Supreme Court rules; this year’s police notification was still awaited in mid-October.

Diwali 2026 dates for Surat

These dates follow Drik Panchang. Gujarati names are given first where they differ. Panchangs occasionally disagree by a day for the smaller observances, so check with your family’s calendar.

Festival	Date	Notes
Sharad Purnima	Sun, 25 Oct	Full moon; dudh-pauva at night
Chandi Padvo	Mon, 26 Oct (expected)	Surat’s ghari and bhusu day
Vagh Baras	Thu, 5 Nov	Start of the Diwali days
Dhanteras	Fri, 6 Nov	Gold, silver and utensil buying
Kali Chaudas	Sat, 7 Nov	Choti Diwali in other regions
Diwali / Lakshmi Puja	Sun, 8 Nov	Chopda Pujan for businesses
Gap day	Mon, 9 Nov	Between Diwali and the New Year
Bestu Varas (New Year)	Tue, 10 Nov	Nutan Varsh; visits and greetings
Bhai Bij	Wed, 11 Nov	Brothers visit sisters
Labh Pancham	Around Sat, 14 Nov	Businesses reopen; confirm locally
Dev Diwali	Tue, 24 Nov	Kartik Purnima

Because Diwali is on a Sunday, the working week barely bends around it: Dhanteras is a Friday, and the New Year and Bhai Bij fall midweek. The last big shopping weekend is 31 October – 1 November, with a final rush on the evenings of 5 and 6 November.

How Surat does Diwali

Three things set a Surti Diwali apart.

It starts with ghari. The festive season here opens two weeks early with Chandi Padvo, when the city sits outdoors under the moon and eats ghari, a rich mawa-and-ghee sweet, with spicy bhusu. In 2026 that is expected on Monday 26 October. Our Chandi Padvo guide explains what to order.

Business comes first. On Diwali evening, traders perform Chopda Pujan, the blessing of the new year’s account books, at shops, offices and temples. For a city built on diamonds and textiles, this is the centre of the festival, and many firms time their first transactions of the new year to Labh Pancham.

Then everything stops. The diamond-cutting units of Varachha and Katargam and the textile markets of the Ring Road close for their Diwali vacation, and a large part of the workforce travels home to Saurashtra and to other states. Trains and buses out of the city are full in the days before, and whole neighbourhoods are noticeably emptier for a week or more.

Things to do before and during Diwali

Shop the markets

• Ghod Dod Road is the street for jewellery showrooms, sarees and festive wear. It is busiest on Dhanteras, Friday 6 November.
• The Ring Road textile markets, east of Majura Gate, are the trade’s base for sarees and dress material. Go on a weekday morning in late October; many wholesale markets close from Diwali.
• Chowk Bazar and the old-city lanes are where to find lamps, rangoli colours, steel and brassware and puja supplies.

Visit a festive exhibition

Lifestyle and wedding exhibitions fill hotel halls in the fortnight before Diwali. The Karra Wedding Exhibition is listed at the Surat Marriott on 22–23 October, and the Southern Gujarat Chamber of Commerce names a Diwali Business Mela among its 2026 exhibitions, though it had not published dates when we checked. Confirmed shows appear on our flea markets and exhibitions page.

Eat the season

Diwali in a Gujarati home means a tin of farsan and a tray of sweets made or bought in the week before: mathiya, chorafali, ghughra, and mithai from the neighbourhood shop. Farsan and sweet shops across the city take advance orders. If you are visiting, this is also the start of the best months for Surat’s food, with ponk appearing from November. See our food listings.

See the lights

There is no single official light show. Walk Athwalines and the old city on the evenings of 6 to 8 November for lit shopfronts, temple decorations and rangoli at every doorstep, and drive the Dumas Road after dark. Malls put up large installations, with VR Surat the obvious one to check.

Catch a show

The run-up to Diwali has a full entertainment calendar. Sundeep Sharma is listed at the Performing Art Centre and Aakash Mehta at The Green Room on Saturday 24 October, and Kavyaraag, a poetry-and-music mehfil, is at Tara Moti Hall on 31 October. Listings thin out in Diwali week itself and pick up again from mid-November. Current dates are on our comedy page.

With children

Look for diya-painting, rangoli and lantern-making workshops in the two weeks before. They will be listed on our kids and family page. The Science Centre is a good outing before the festival, but check its closure dates first.

New Year visits

Bestu Varas morning is for temple visits and for calling on relatives and neighbours with the greeting ‘Saal Mubarak’. In the weeks after, communities and trade groups hold sneh milan gatherings to mark the new year together.

What is open and what is closed

Place	Diwali status
Science Centre	Lists Diwali (three days) among its closed holidays; shut 20–24 October in 2025
Surat Fort	Closed on Diwali; shut 20–24 October in 2025
Sarthana Nature Park	Timing changes for the Diwali vacation are announced in the press
Wholesale textile markets	Closed from Diwali; many reopen around Labh Pancham
Diamond units	Annual vacation
Malls and multiplexes	Open
Restaurants	Many open; confirm for Diwali night and Bestu Varas

The 2025 closures of the Science Centre and the fort ran for five days around Diwali. If the pattern holds, expect them to shut for several days around 8 November 2026. Check the Science Centre page and the corporation’s site before you go.

Firecrackers: the rules

Surat does not have Delhi’s blanket restrictions, but crackers are regulated here too.

• Two hours on Diwali night. The Supreme Court’s order of October 2018 allows crackers to be burst only between 8 pm and 10 pm on Diwali. State and city notifications in Gujarat have followed that window.
• Green crackers only. The same order permits only reduced-emission green crackers and bars joined crackers, the long strings known as laris.
• This year’s notification. The Surat Police Commissioner issues a notification before each Diwali, which also covers where crackers may be sold and stored. The 2026 notification had not been published when this guide was written on 12 October. We will update this page when it is.
• Buy from licensed stalls. Temporary cracker stalls need a licence from the authorities. Avoid unlicensed roadside sellers.

Safety on Diwali night

• Burns: hold the burn under cool running water for 10 to 20 minutes. Do not apply ice, toothpaste or ghee. Call 108 for an ambulance, 101 for the fire service or 112 for any emergency.
• Children should handle only sparklers, with an adult beside them, wearing cotton rather than synthetic clothes.
• Diyas and curtains: keep lamps away from curtains, paper decorations and gas cylinders, and put them out before you sleep.
• Pets are frightened by the noise. Keep them indoors in a closed room.
• Empty homes: if you are travelling for the vacation, tell a neighbour and lock up properly.

A Diwali plan that avoids the rush

• Weekend of 24–25 October: exhibitions and big shopping trips, while the markets are still manageable.
• Monday 26 October: Chandi Padvo. Order ghari ahead.
• 31 October – 1 November: the last full shopping weekend for clothes, gifts and décor.
• Thursday 5 and Friday 6 November: Vagh Baras and Dhanteras. Jewellers on Ghod Dod Road are busiest on Friday evening.
• Sunday 8 November: puja, diyas and family. Crackers from 8 pm to 10 pm.
• Tuesday 10 and Wednesday 11 November: New Year and Bhai Bij visits. Leave early; residential roads fill up by mid-morning.

Getting around in Diwali week

• Book travel now. Trains and buses towards Saurashtra, North Gujarat and other states fill up weeks ahead.
• Use autos for market trips. Parking near Chowk Bazar, the Ring Road and Ghod Dod Road is close to impossible in the last week.
• Expect thinner services on Diwali night. Check Sitilink’s announcement if you depend on buses.

For the full picture of what is on, check this week’s events and our Diwali events hub. Planning further ahead? Our New Year’s Eve guide covers 31 December in a dry state.

Frequently asked questions

When is Diwali 2026?

Diwali (Lakshmi Puja) is on Sunday, 8 November 2026. Dhanteras is on Friday 6 November and Kali Chaudas on Saturday 7 November, according to Drik Panchang.

When is Bestu Varas, the Gujarati New Year, in 2026?

Tuesday, 10 November 2026, by Drik Panchang, with Bhai Bij on Wednesday 11 November. Monday 9 November falls between Diwali and the New Year as a gap day in most calendars.

What are the firecracker timings in Surat for Diwali 2026?

The Surat police notification for 2026 had not been issued when this guide was written. The Supreme Court's 2018 order, which state and city notifications have followed, allows crackers only from 8 pm to 10 pm on Diwali, and only permitted green crackers.

Is Surat closed during Diwali?

Much of it is. Diamond units and textile markets take their annual vacation, many shops shut from Diwali for several days, and the Science Centre and Surat Fort close for the festival. Malls, multiplexes and many restaurants stay open.

When is Chandi Padvo in 2026?

Chandi Padvo, Surat's ghari festival, is expected on Monday 26 October 2026, the day after Sharad Purnima on Sunday 25 October. Local panchangs can differ by a day.

Where should I shop for Diwali in Surat?

Ghod Dod Road for jewellery and festive wear, the Ring Road textile markets for sarees and dress material, Chowk Bazar and the old city for household goods and lamps, and the festive exhibitions held at hotels and halls in the weeks before.

Sources checked

• www.drikpanchang.com/diwali/diwali-puja-calendar.html?year=2026
• www.drikpanchang.com/calendars/hindu/hinducalendar.html?year=2026
• www.drikpanchang.com/calendars/indian/indiancalendar.html?year=2026
• en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chandi_Padvo
• en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghari_(sweet)
• en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surat
• www.suratmunicipal.gov.in/Services/TicketRates
• www.suratmunicipal.gov.in/FAQs/ScienceCenter
• www.suratmunicipal.gov.in/Services/SuratFortHome
• www.suratmunicipal.gov.in/FAQs/NaturePark
• sgcci.in/
• www.vrsurat.com/
• allevents.in/surat/karra-wedding-exhibition-surat/200030758620539
• allevents.in/surat/comedy
• allevents.in/surat/kavyaraag-_-mehfil-by-chinmayi-tripathi-and-joell-muk
• deshgujarat.com/2026/10/11/sharadiya-navratri-2026-begins-festive-season-ki

Researched and written by the surat2go editors. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.