Ganesh Chaturthi 2026: Date, Muhurat, Visarjan and Full Schedule

Ganesh Chaturthi is one of India's most joyful and beloved festivals, welcoming Lord Ganesha, the remover of obstacles, into homes and grand public pandals for ten days of devotion, music and celebration. This guide from Delhi Agra Tour Packages gives you the exact 2026 dates, the Sthapana Muhurat, the full day-by-day schedule, the Visarjan date, the key rituals and where to experience it, planned around a Golden Triangle tour if you are visiting.

I was born in Delhi and in more than 11 years planning trips for Experience My India I have shared this festival's magic with many travellers. Here is the clear, complete guide.

Ganesh Chaturthi 2026 at a glance

Ganesh Chaturthi 2026 full schedule

Here is the complete 2026 calendar, from the installation of the idol to the final immersion, so you can plan the whole festival.

Not every household keeps Ganesha for all ten days and every duration is equally valid. Families choose a 1.5, 3, 5, 7 or full 10-day cycle by tradition or vow and immerse the idol on the day that matches.

When is Ganesh Chaturthi 2026?

Ganesh Chaturthi 2026 is on Monday, 14 September 2026. It falls on Bhadrapada Shukla Chaturthi, the fourth day of the waxing moon in the Hindu month of Bhadrapada and the Chaturthi tithi begins at 7:06 AM that morning.

The day marks the birth of Lord Ganesha and it opens the ten-day Ganeshotsav, the grand festival that transforms entire cities, especially across Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Telangana and Gujarat.

What is the Sthapana Muhurat for 2026?

The most auspicious time to install the idol, the Madhyahna or midday Sthapana Muhurat, is from 11:02 AM to 1:31 PM on 14 September 2026. During this window, the ritual of Pran Pratishtha is performed, invoking life into the clay idol through the chanting of sacred mantras.

If you cannot install the idol within this exact window, there are other auspicious times through the day and the midday period is what most families and pandals aim for.

When is Ganesh Visarjan 2026?

The main Ganesh Visarjan in 2026 is on Friday, 25 September, the day of Anant Chaturdashi, which concludes the ten-day festival. On this day the largest public processions carry the idols to water for immersion, to cries of Ganpati Bappa Morya.

Because the festival follows the lunar calendar, families who keep shorter cycles immerse earlier, on the 1.5-day, 3-day, 5-day or 7-day, as listed in the schedule above. Anant Chaturdashi, the fourteenth day of the waxing moon, is the grand finale for the ten-day households and the great public mandals.

What is the significance of Ganesh Chaturthi?

Ganesh Chaturthi, also called Vinayaka Chaturthi, celebrates the birth of Lord Ganesha, the elephant-headed son of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. He is revered as Vighnaharta, the remover of obstacles and as the god of wisdom and new beginnings, worshipped before any important undertaking.

The much-loved story tells how Parvati created a boy from the paste of her own body to guard her door and how Shiva, not knowing him, struck off his head in anger, then restored him to life with the head of an elephant, granting him the boon that no work would begin without his name. It is a festival of beginnings, wisdom and devotion.

What are the key rituals of Ganesh Chaturthi?

The festival follows a warm and beautiful set of rituals across its days:

• Pran Pratishtha: invoking life into the clay idol during the midday muhurat.

• Shhodashopachara: the sixteen-step worship, with offerings of coconut, jaggery and sweets.

• Offerings: modaks, the sweet Ganesha loves, along with red hibiscus flowers and durva grass, traditionally twenty-one of each.

• Daily aarti: morning and evening prayers through the days the idol is kept.

• Visarjan: a final aarti and uttarpuja before the idol is carried to water and immersed.

Why should you not see the moon on Ganesh Chaturthi?

A fascinating tradition surrounds this festival: it is said you should avoid looking at the moon on Ganesh Chaturthi night. According to the katha, the moon once laughed at Lord Ganesha and so seeing the moon on this day is believed to bring Mithya Dosha, a false accusation or blame.

In 2026, the avoidance window is roughly 9:01 AM to 8:09 PM on 14 September. Those who happen to see the moon traditionally recite the Syamantaka story of Lord Krishna as the remedy. It is one of the festival's most intriguing customs.

What does Ganesh Visarjan mean?

The Visarjan, the immersion of the idol, is the festival's most moving moment. After days of hosting Lord Ganesha with love, families and communities walk him to the water and gently let him go, with the cry of Ganpati Bappa Morya, Pudhchya Varshi Lavkar Ya, come again soon, next year.

There is a deep beauty in it. The clay returns to water and the farewell carries a quiet spiritual truth, that all things are temporary and that letting go with grace is itself a practice. It is a bittersweet, joyful goodbye, made in the certainty of his return.

How can you celebrate being eco-friendly?

With so many idols immersed each year, an eco-friendly celebration matters. The traditional and kindest choice is a natural clay idol, a shaadu or mitti murti, which dissolves cleanly, rather than one made of plaster of Paris with chemical paints.

Many families now immerse a small clay idol at home in a bucket or drum of clean water, completing the ritual with respect for both the deity and the rivers. It is a lovely, responsible way to keep the tradition.

Where is Ganesh Chaturthi celebrated?

The festival is grandest in Maharashtra, above all in Mumbai and Pune, where enormous public pandals, dhol-tasha processions and towering idols fill the streets for ten days, alongside Goa, Karnataka, Telangana and Gujarat and now the global diaspora.

In Delhi and the north, the festival is celebrated with community pandals and temple gatherings and temples across the city hold special aartis and bhajans. Our ISKCON Temple Delhi and Birla Mandir Delhi guides point to serene places to mark the season and our things to do in Delhi guide helps you plan a full day around them. If you are in Delhi in early September, it is worth pairing this with Janmashtami 2026 in Delhi, which falls just days earlier.

Travel tips for Ganesh Chaturthi 2026

• Note the key dates: Sthapana on 14 September and the main Visarjan on 25 September.

• Install the idol in the Madhyahna Muhurat, 11:02 AM to 1:31 PM, if you can.

• Choose an eco-friendly clay idol for a responsible immersion.

• Offer modak, durva grass and red hibiscus to Lord Ganesha.

• Reconfirm the muhurat and tithi for your exact city with a panchang.

• Expect large, joyful crowds at public pandals and immersion sites.

Planning to experience Ganesh Chaturthi and want the temples and timing sorted? Message us on WhatsApp and Experience My India will build it for you.

Plan your trip with us

Festivals are the most vivid time to experience India and we plan and run the day so the timing, the transport through the crowds and the sightseeing all work, leaving you free to soak up the atmosphere.

Tell us your dates and group size and we will price it honestly around your standard rather than a fixed figure. Browse our Delhi Agra Tour Packages for the options or extend the visit into Agra and Jaipur with our Golden Triangle tours. For a focused city day, see our Delhi day tour.

Related guides

• Hanuman Jayanti 2027: the birth of Lord Hanuman.

• Raksha Bandhan 2026: the festival of the sibling bond.

• New Delhi tour: the capital's imperial landmarks.

• Old Delhi tour: the Red Fort, Jama Masjid and Chandni Chowk.

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