Festival dates · 2026
Phalguna Shukla Purnima. The date in 21 cities, computed for local sunrise, with the tithi times.
The cities split across Mon, 2 Mar and Tue, 3 Mar this year: the tithi boundary falls between their sunrises. The table shows every city.
| City | Date | Tithi (local time) | Kathmandu date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia and New Zealand | |||
| Sydney | Tuesday 3 March 2026 | Mon, 2 Mar, 11:28 pm → Tue, 3 Mar, 10:39 pm | Mon, 2 Mar |
| Melbourne | Tuesday 3 March 2026 | Mon, 2 Mar, 11:28 pm → Tue, 3 Mar, 10:39 pm | Mon, 2 Mar |
| Brisbane | Tuesday 3 March 2026 | Mon, 2 Mar, 10:28 pm → Tue, 3 Mar, 9:39 pm | Mon, 2 Mar |
| Perth | Tuesday 3 March 2026 | Mon, 2 Mar, 8:28 pm → Tue, 3 Mar, 7:39 pm | Mon, 2 Mar |
| Adelaide | Tuesday 3 March 2026 | Mon, 2 Mar, 10:58 pm → Tue, 3 Mar, 10:09 pm | Mon, 2 Mar |
| Canberra | Tuesday 3 March 2026 | Mon, 2 Mar, 11:28 pm → Tue, 3 Mar, 10:39 pm | Mon, 2 Mar |
| Hobart | Tuesday 3 March 2026 | Mon, 2 Mar, 11:28 pm → Tue, 3 Mar, 10:39 pm | Mon, 2 Mar |
| Darwin | Tuesday 3 March 2026 | Mon, 2 Mar, 9:58 pm → Tue, 3 Mar, 9:09 pm | Mon, 2 Mar |
| Auckland | Tuesday 3 March 2026 | Tue, 3 Mar, 1:28 am → Wed, 4 Mar, 12:39 am | Mon, 2 Mar |
| Nepal | |||
| Kathmandu | Monday 2 March 2026 | Mon, 2 Mar, 6:13 pm → Tue, 3 Mar, 5:24 pm | — |
| United States | |||
| New York | Monday 2 March 2026 | Mon, 2 Mar, 7:28 am → Tue, 3 Mar, 6:39 am | same day |
| Dallas–Fort Worth | Monday 2 March 2026 | Mon, 2 Mar, 6:28 am → Tue, 3 Mar, 5:39 am | same day |
| Houston | Monday 2 March 2026 | Mon, 2 Mar, 6:28 am → Tue, 3 Mar, 5:39 am | same day |
| Chicago | Monday 2 March 2026 | Mon, 2 Mar, 6:28 am → Tue, 3 Mar, 5:39 am | same day |
| Washington DC | Monday 2 March 2026 | Mon, 2 Mar, 7:28 am → Tue, 3 Mar, 6:39 am | same day |
| Boston | Monday 2 March 2026 | Mon, 2 Mar, 7:28 am → Tue, 3 Mar, 6:39 am | same day |
| Atlanta | Monday 2 March 2026 | Mon, 2 Mar, 7:28 am → Tue, 3 Mar, 6:39 am | same day |
| San Francisco Bay Area | Monday 2 March 2026 | Mon, 2 Mar, 4:28 am → Tue, 3 Mar, 3:39 am | same day |
| Los Angeles | Monday 2 March 2026 | Mon, 2 Mar, 4:28 am → Tue, 3 Mar, 3:39 am | same day |
| Seattle | Monday 2 March 2026 | Mon, 2 Mar, 4:28 am → Tue, 3 Mar, 3:39 am | same day |
Rule: the day the tithi covers the evening (pradosh). Phalguna Purnima at pradosh (evening).
The bonfire on the evening of Phalguna Purnima that opens Holi. It remembers Prahlada, the boy devotee of Vishnu, who walked unharmed out of the fire that consumed his aunt Holika, and marks the end of winter.
Fires are lit after sunset where the Purnima tithi covers the evening (pradosh); the colours follow the next day.
Tuesday 3 March 2026. Phalguna Shukla Purnima; the tithi runs Mon, 2 Mar, 11:28 pm to Tue, 3 Mar, 10:39 pm Sydney time. Kathmandu keeps it on Monday 2 March 2026.
Monday 2 March 2026 in Kathmandu. Phalguna Shukla Purnima; the tithi runs Mon, 2 Mar, 6:13 pm to Tue, 3 Mar, 5:24 pm Nepal time.
Monday 2 March 2026 in New York (the same day across the US cities listed). US sunrises fall ten to fifteen hours behind Kathmandu's, so when the tithi ends in that gap the US keeps the festival a day earlier than Nepal.
Because the day is decided by which civil day the tithi (lunar day) is current at local sunrise, or for this festival covers the evening. Sydney's sunrise is four to six hours ahead of Kathmandu's and New York's ten hours behind, so a tithi that ends between two sunrises gives a different day. In 2026 the cities split across Mon, 2 Mar and Tue, 3 Mar.
Sun and Moon positions from Meeus' algorithms with the Lahiri ayanamsa, amanta lunar months named by the solar ingress inside them, and the day on which the tithi covers the evening (pradosh). Tithi boundaries are accurate to a few minutes; a boundary within minutes of sunrise is worth checking against your temple's panchang.
Other years: Holika Dahan (Holi eve) 2027. Nearby: Maha Shivaratri · Holi (colours) · all festivals.
See also: the full-year calendar by city · why festival dates differ between Nepal, India and Australia.
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