• Here is a list of places across India that you can travel to during 3 to 5 day weekend holidays. Format is place with album/travelogue link.

In 2024 we shared ideas on where one could travel long weekends. Long weekend dates are taken from article by Preeti Lal in Hindustan Times (1/1/25). Thanks. I also referred to DriPanchang to know exact dates and added to list of long weekends, for listing see below. Some holidays are state level ones, check.

1. January 4 days 12-14, Saturday to Tuesday. Makar Sankranti+Pongal. Monday 13 is Lohri, a likely holiday in the North. It is also H Ali birthday.

2. February -Mahashivaratri is on Wednesday 28. If you take leave for Monday/Tuesday can be a 5 day holiday. Ditto for Shivaji Jayanti i.e. on 19.

3. March 4 days 13-16, Thursday to Sunday. Holi. Check Holi is played on 14. Parsi New Year is on Thursday 20. Take Friday off and have a 4 day holiday.

4. March 3 days 29-31, Saturday to Monday. Eid.

5. April 4 days 10-13, Thursday to Sunday. Mahavir Jayanti on 10. U need to take Friday off for long weekend. Check if 14^th Ambedkar Jayanti is a holiday in your state. 15^th is Bihu, an Assamese festival.

6. April 3 days 18-20, Friday to Sunday. Good Friday.

7. May 3 days 10-12, Saturday to Monday. Buddha Purnima. 29 is Maharana Pratap Jayanti – should be a holiday in Rajasthan atleast. 

8. June and July - no long weekend. Guru Purnima on July 10 should be a national holiday.

9. August 3 days 15-17, Friday to Sunday. Janmashtami. Wednesday 27 is Ganesh Chaturthi. If do not get Ganesha home, take Monday/Tuesday off.

10. September 3 days 5-7, Friday-Sunday. Onam. Check if holiday in your state.

11. October 5 days 1-5, Wednesday-Sunday. Navaratri. Dussehra is on Thursday 2. You might need Friday off. 

12. October 6 days 18-23, Saturday to Thursday. Diwali+Bhai Dooj. Usually one stays at home but also know some who travel.

13. November 5 days, Saturday to Wednesday. Guru Nanak Jayanti is on Wednesday 5. If you take Monday-Tuesday off can have a 5 day break.  

14. December 4 days 25-28, Thursday to Sunday. Christmas. Need to take Friday off. 

My focus is India. Format is month-wise places to visit and links. Generally November to March is very good to visit in North/Western/Central India and most parts of the South. Monsoons have their own charm.

Ayodhya & Kashi are attracting devotees around the year. Both well connected.

1. January 4 days 12-14, Saturday to Tuesday.

Makar Sankranti+Pongal. Monday 13 is Lohri, a likely holiday in the North. It is also H Ali birthday. Options are for 4 to 5 days. You decide what works.

A. Jaisalmer, Sam Dunes, Border -Connected by road, rail, air is Jaisalmer.

Albums Jaisalmer Fort , Jaisalmer City , Havelis of Jaisalmer , Drive to the Border-Tanot Temple , Longewal War Memorial where movie Border was shot and Sam Dunes

B. Jodhpur and Bikaner - Spend 1.5 days in Jodhpur and do day trip to Bikaner. Start Jodhpur connected by air, train, road. 

Albums Mehrangarh Fort , Mandore Fort , Dhurries Jodhpur , Junagarh Fort Bikaner , Gajner Palace off Bikaner , Karni Mata Mandir before Bikaner  

C. Rann Utsav, Kutch – Start Bhuj connected by rail or air. 

Albums Prag Palace Bhuj, Tent City Dhordo and Salt Desert . For shopping go to village Bhujodi, app 10 kms from Bhuj, suggest Shrujan NGO

D. Step-well, Modhera Temple, Patan-Start Amdavad by road, rail air.

Albums includes Rani-ki-vav Patan , Sun temple Modhera and Ambaji Temple , Adalaj-vav step-well 

E. Gwalior Fort, Palace and around – Start Gwalior connected by road, rail, air.  

Albums Gwalior Fort , Jai Vilas Palace , Rock-cut Jain . In Morena Bateshwar temples , Padawali temples and Mitawali temples

If you have two days more drive down or take a train to Khajuraho. Read about Temples

F. Bhopal, Sanchi, Udaygiri – Start Bhopal by road, rail, air.

Bhopal has lakes and a tribal museum. Close by are Bhimbetka Rock Shelters, Sanchi Stupa, in Vidisha temples and Udaygiri Caves and Bhojpur Shiv Mandir.

Albums/articles Bhimbetka , Sanchi stupa , Bhojpur Mandir

G. To Hampi via Bengaluru

Bengaluru to Hampi drive is about 5.5 hours. Or take flight from Bengaluru/Hyderabad to Vidyanagar airport from where Hampi is an hour drive. Good buses are available from Mumbai/Bengaluru to Hospet/Hampi.

Travelogue with album links on Hampi

H. To Belur/Halebidu Temples via Bengaluru 

Bengaluru to Belur is about 4 hour drive. Keep 1 day each for Belur and Halebidu temples.

Albums Belur Temples , Halebidu Temples  , Halebidu Jain temple

I. To Bandipur and Nagerhole National Parks via Bengaluru

Travelogues Bandipur Park, Nagerhole National Park

J. To Kodaikanal via Madurai

Fly into Madurai. See Meenakshi Temple and Nayak Palace and then drive to Kodaikanal, takes about 3.5 hours.

Albums Meenakshi Temple , Nayak Palace

K. To Chettinad via Madurai

Fly into Madurai from where Chettinad is less than two hours. Chettinad is known for Chettiar Homes, awesome is the word.

Albums Palaces of Chettinad , Bangla Hotel Chettinad , Visalam Hotel

L. To Trichy/Tanjore via Trichy

Fly into Trichy or train. See Srirangam Temple etc. From there Tanjore is app. 1 hour drive. See Brihadesvara Temple and Maratha Palace.

Albums Trichy-Srirangam Temple , Rock Fort Temple , Jambukeswarar Temple  Albums Tanjore- Brihadesvara Temple , Maratha Palace

M. Mahabalipuram/Pondicherry/Kanchipuram via Chennai 

Pondicherry has Auroville and Sri Aurobindo Samadhi not to forget beaches. Other two have temples. Depending on what you like chose two out of three places unless you have four days.

Albums Shore Temple , Five Rathas Mahabalipuram , Matri Mandir Auroville ,

Albums Kanchipuram – Kailasanathar Temple, Varadaraja Perumal Temple 

N. Guwahati

Connected by air, road, rail. See temples/Brahmaputra river. Bout five hours drive is Kaziranga National Park famous for rhinos.  

Albums Temples of Guwahati, Sankara Kalashetra , Lachit Borphukan Memorial

O. Majuli Island, Assam

If you want to relax go to the island town of Majuli via Jorhat

P. Baroda and State of Unity – Baroda connected by road, rail and air. 

Albums Lakshmi Vilas Palace , Maharshi Aurobindo Ashram Baroda and Statue of Unity

Q. Jaipur and around – Start Jaipur connected by road, rail and air. 

Albums Jaipur city , Amber and Jaigarh Forts , Chand Baori near Jaipur , Bhangarh Fort near Jaipur , Places to Eat and Shop in Jaipur

R. Orchha and around

If you want to relax then take a train from Delhi to Jhansi (5 hours) or overnight Rajdhani from Mumbai to Jhansi from where Orchha is about 15 kms. This is Bundelkhand, has a history of its own. Orchha is on banks of Betwa river.

Albums Orchha, Bundela Paintings , Jhansi Fort and Travelogue . 70 kms away is amazing Garkundar Fort

S. Bhubaneshwar/ Puri

Fly into Bhubaneswar, The City of Temples (keep 1 day) and drive to Puri via Sun Temple Konarak. Puri has lovely beaches too.

Albums Temples of Bhubaneswar , Mukteshwar Temple ,  Raja Rani Temple , Sun Temple Konarak . In Puri visit Heritage Village Raghurajpur , Jagannath Temple and Totapuri Ashram. If have an extra day visit Chilika Lake

T. To Gandikota, Andhra Pradesh via Bengaluru

Rajat flew in from Delhi to Bengaluru and drove to Gandikota, The Grand Canyon of India. Also saw enroute Devanahalli Fort, Lepakshi Temple, Belum Caves and amazing Shiv/Vishnu temples at Tadipatri.

Read Rajat travelogue here and about Lepakshi Temple here  

U. Patna, Bodh Gaya, Rajgir, Nalanda- 3 to 4 days, Patna connected by rail, air.

Albums Bodh Gaya, Rajgir, Nalanda

V. Bengaluru to Mysore-4 days. If you have time visit Sravanbelagola and Somnathpur Temple. All albums are on site.  

W. Udaipur is another favourite for 3 or 5 days. 

All albums in Udaipur and around i.e. Mewar

Travelogue Best of Pushkar, Nathdwara, Chittorgarh, Udaipur in 6 days

WW. Jabalpur and around 4 days

Travelogue to Gond Palace, Mandla , Tigers of Kanha National Park

Albums Amarkantak, Marble Rocks Jabalpur, Chausath Yogini Temple Jabalpur

2. February -Mahashivaratri is on Wednesday 28.

If you take leave for Monday/Tuesday can be a 5 day holiday. Ditto for Shivaji Jayanti i.e. on 19. See details above.

3. March 4 days 13-16, Thursday to Sunday.

Holi. Check Holi is played on 14. Parsi New Year is on Thursday 20. Take Friday off and have a 4 day holiday.

4. March 3 days 29-31, Saturday to Monday. Eid.

The best Holi is near Mathura at Nandgaon and Barsana or Kathi Holi Maharashtra. When break is for 3 days options are -

A. Rishikesh and Devprayag

Relax at Rishikesh. You can learn Yoga, take a dip in the Holy Ganga and a short river rafting experience. Devprayag is the meeting point of two rivers Alakananda and Bhagirathi where they join to become the Holy Ganga.

B. Jaipur – covered above.

C. Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary

Bharatpur is about 4.5 hours from Delhi or closer to Jaipur. Besides the bird sanctuary it also has a fort, palace and museum. Album

D. Manali

You can fly to Bhuntal Airport near Kullu or take an overnight bus from Delhi or drive from Chandigarh. Do use Atal Tunnel to cross into Keylong. Source of Beas River is at Rohang Pass.

Albums Hadimba Temple, Solang Valley , close by Manikran, Manali Winter Carnival

E. Chail in Himachal Pradesh

Chail has an old palace and relaxed place. It is about 2.5 hours drive from Chandigarh i.e. well connected by air and road. 

F. Mussoorie

It is less than an hour’s drive from Dehradun which is well connected by air, rail and road.  

G. Nainital

Stay in the less crowded parts of Nainital, away from the main market to enjoy. If have time visit Almora, Binsar and Jageshwar Shiv Mandir.

Albums Nainital, Almora, Binsar , Jageshwar Temple

H. Jim Corbett National Park

It is about a six hour drive from Delhi. Better to hire a vehicle from Delhi because you will need transport there too.

Albums Tigers of Jim Corbett , Corbett beyond Tigers

I. Amritsar  

Take a night train or drive is about 7 hours. A new Expressway is being built. When ready it shall reduce driving time.

Albums Golden Temple-Hari Mandir, Durgiana Temple , Attari Wagah Border. Read Best Places to eat in Amritsar

J. Varanasi- connected by road, rail, air. Album Ghats of Kashi

K. Gopalpur on Sea via Bhubaneswar

It is a very popular beach resort and about 3 hours drive from Bhubaneswar i.e. well connected by air and rail. 

L. Sundarbans in West Bengal

It is about a 2.5 hour drive from Kolkata. Read Travelogue and see Album

M. Almora / Binsar in Kumaon

Take a train to Kathgodam and drive to Almora or fly to Pantnagar Airport from where Almora is about a 4 hour drive. Binsar offers a great view of the Himalayan peaks. Albums Almora, Binsar , Jageshwar Temple

N. Chaukori, Kumaon

If you want to relax, read a book Chaukori a small hill-station is the place. It is about 7.5 hours drive from Pantnagar Airport and 7 hours from Kathgodam station.  It is famous for sunrise and sunset. Album Chaukori

O. Kodaikanal, Tamil Nadu

Fly into Madurai, see Meenakshi Temple and Nayak Palace and drive to Kodaikanal about 3.5 hours.

P. Mahableshwar near Mumbai

It is about 5.5 hours drive from Mumbai. Good hotels, lots of history w.r.t Shivaji and has a Lake (boating too).

Q. Sikkim

Check the weather. Read travelogue The Best of Sikkim in 5 days

R. Bhutan

Although Bhutan is a separate nation, it is close to India and good weather. For Travelogue 7 days on Bhutan . To see 5 albums on Bhutan

S. Ellora, Ajanta, Lonar Crater- Aurangabad connected by road, rail, air.

Albums Kailasa Temple Ellora, Ajanta Caves, Lonar Crater

5. April 4 days 10-13, Thursday to Sunday.

Mahavir Jayanti on 10. U need to take Friday off. Check if 14^th Ambedkar Jayanti is a holiday in your state. 15^th is Bihu, an Assamese festival.

6. April 3 days 18-20, Friday to Sunday. Good Friday.

You can adjust the above destinations into 3 or 4 day trips.

7. May 3 days 10-12, Saturday to Monday.

Buddha Purnima. 29 is Maharana Pratap Jayanti – should be a holiday in Rajasthan atleast. 

8. June and July - no long weekend.

Guru Purnima on July 10 should be a national holiday.

9. August 3 days 15-17, Friday to Sunday. Janmashtami.

Wednesday 27^th is Ganesh Chaturthi. If holiday, do not Ganesha home, take Monday/Tuesday off.

Monsoon is good time to visit Mandu near Indore. Album Mandu in the Rains

10. September 3 days 5-7, Friday-Sunday. Onam. Check if holiday in your state.

11. October 5 days 1-5, Wednesday-Sunday. Navaratri. Dussehra is on Thursday is on 2. Might need Friday off.  

12. October 6 days 18-23, Saturday to Thursday. Diwali+Bhai Dooj. Usually one stays at home but also know those who travel.

On Kartik Purnima, visit Pushkar or Kashi and have a snan in the sarovar or Ganga. At Kashi, witness Dev Deepavali for sure i.e. usually on Kartik Purnima. Varanasi is well connected by road, rail and air. For Pushkar fly to Jaipur from where it is about a 2 hour drive or take train to Ajmer.

Albums Pushkar on Kartik Purnima, Dev Deepavali Kashi, People of Kashi celebrating Dev Deepavali Close by visit Sarnath and Ramnagar Fort

13. November – Guru Nanak Jayanti is on Wednesday 5. 

If take Monday-Tuesday off can have a 5 day break. 

14. December 4 days 25-28, Thursday to Sunday. Christmas. Need to take Friday off. 

You can also travel to select locations in Southeast Asia

1. Angkor Watt, Cambodia

2. Bangkok, Thailand

3. Bali

4. Prambanan Temple, Java

5. Yatra to Mount Bromo in Java

6. About My Son sanctuary, Vietnam  

Hope you found this useful.

To read all travelogues and yatras on esamskriti