Nalbari

The annual Raas Music Festival is a significant cultural and spiritual festival of North East India celebrated in Assam at the end of the year, generally in November. The festivities go on for 11 days in the premises of the Hari Mandir. ‘Raas’ essentially translates to dancing in delight, and is often associated with Lord Krishna - a symbol of love, happiness and beauty. And indeed the festival epitomises this - by transforming the little town of Nalbari into a festive extravaganza and attracting thousands of visitors every year. The festival was first believed to have been celebrated in the year 1933 in the Nalbari Purana Natkhola with the contributions of the late Amar Kundu, Naren Basu and others. The venue was later shifted to the present Hari Mandir to accommodate the growing number of visitors. In the earlier years, only upper caste Brahmins made the religious and other idols to be showcased at the festival, and people from the lower castes were forbidden to do so. The main puja mandap or hall at Hari Mandir has a beautiful idol of Radha-Krishna where the main Raas pooja takes place. In addition, there are several other temporary stalls with idols depicting a varied range of events - from events in the life of Lord Krishna to mechanized versions of events like the Orissa floods, the killing of Phoolan Devi and the bombing of the World Trade Centre, to name a few. The Raas festival, according to officials,is soon set to become the state’s tourism festival.

Nalbari is getaway adorned with exotic beauty of nature and a popular spot for nature tourism. It offers enough tourists attraction that can make your one day visit to the destination, incredibly exciting. After a healthy breakfast at the hotel, begin your day with a visit to Hari Temple, one of the most famous temples in the city. Shripur Dewalay Mandir and Daulashal Temple are the other major temples in the city worth visiting. Break for lunch at a restaurant and head on to Sonkuhira, a picnic spot and a place to connect with nature. Next either you can visit the magnificent Buddhist Temple and if any time left then to Ganga Pukhuri. Head back to the hotel for warm dinner and cherish the beauty of the place in the moonlight.

A little difficult to access as it is 60 km away from the nearest major airport and railway station. Peak seasons may be crowded.

If you are a nature enthusiast and love watching birds, you should visit Nalbari. It is a perfect place for pilgrims, history buffs and archaeology lovers. It is visited by Hindu pilgrims from all across the country. A perfect destination for families and couples.

With a sub-tropical climate, Nalbari experiences warm and dry summers which might be slightly uncomfortable especially during the peak. The monsoon season in the area receives extensive rainfall with the temperature moderate. Winters season in the area is quite cold which may require you to carry a set of heavy woollens. The temperature during the time may drop to a single figure. It is best to travel to Nalbari between the months of October and February.
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Nalbari houses some of the very fine dine restaurants and eating joints offering delicious authentic Assamese cuisine. Various different delicacies of fish are served here including Paleng Xaakor Maachor Jhol.
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Nalbari can be directly reached by road and rail. Guwahati houses both the closest airport and railway station. There are frequent bus services available to and fro Guwahati.
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The top things to do in Nalbari are Buddhist Temple, Hari Mandir, Billeshwar Temple, Shripur Dewalay Mandir, Daulashal Temple, Jaypal Than. You can see all the places to visit in Nalbari here