Maha Shivaratri Festival TourThe Night of Shiva at Pashupatinath

Maha Shivaratri falls on the fourteenth night of the waning moon in the Hindu month of Phalguna, in February or March. Published calendars put it on Saturday 6 March in 2027, Falgun 22 in the Nepali calendar. Nepal’s date can differ from India’s by a day, so Sama Yatra fixes the tour dates once the Government of Nepal publishes its holiday list.

Pashupatinath stays open through the night, sadhus travel from across India to camp in the temple grounds, and thousands of pilgrims come to worship Shiva. It is the largest gathering of the year at the temple.

Only Hindus may enter the main courtyard of Pashupatinath, on Shivaratri as on every other day. Visitors of other faiths can watch the festival from the eastern bank of the Bagmati, which is open to everyone.

Airport transfers, 3-star hotels, full-board vegetarian meals, flights between Kathmandu and Pokhara, all ground transport including the drive to Muktinath, the Annapurna Conservation Area Permit, a guide, and sightseeing with entrance fees.

The Maha Shivaratri Festival Tour costs USD 1,210 per person for any group of two or more. A single traveller is quoted on request.

The Maha Shivaratri Festival Tour is 7 days and 6 nights from Kathmandu. It flies to Pokhara on day 2, drives to Muktinath for darshan on day 3 and sleeps in Jomsom, stops at Galeshwor Mahadev on the drive back on day 4, flies to Kathmandu on day 5, and spends day 6, the festival, at Pashupatinath.

Galeshwor Mahadev is a Shiva temple built on a large rock on the banks of the Kali Gandaki, about 3 km north of Beni in Myagdi. Local tradition holds that the neck of Sati fell here, which gives the temple its name, and fairs are held on the Mondays of Shrawan and at Maha Shivaratri. The Maha Shivaratri Festival Tour stops there on day 4, on the drive back from Muktinath to Pokhara.

The highest point of the Maha Shivaratri Festival Tour is Muktinath Temple at 3,710 metres, visited on day 3. You sleep that night lower down the valley in Jomsom.

As of October 2026 the Pashupati Area Development Trust publishes puja rates in Nepalese rupees, from NPR 2,100 (about USD 14) for a Panchamrit Puja and NPR 7,500 (about USD 49) for Panchamrit with Rudrabhishek and Balbhog to NPR 2,500,000 for the eleven-day Atirudri. Pujas are paid at these rates unless your journey already includes one. Mondays, the Mondays of Shrawan in July and August, and Maha Shivaratri in February or March are the most auspicious and most crowded days.

Pilgrims take darshan at the main temple, bathe under the 108 water spouts and pray at the Jwala Mai flame shrine, offering flowers or prasad. A special puja with a priest, or Buddhist prayers through the local community, is arranged on the spot, and no published tariff exists for either. Janai Purnima in August, Buddha Jayanti in April or May, and Dashain and Tihar bring special observances.

Sama Yatra takes a 30% deposit to confirm a booking for the Maha Shivaratri Festival Tour. Bookings cannot be cancelled, but the journey can be postponed for up to two years at the same cost.