Festival dates · 2026
Also Mesha Sankranti · Vaisakhi
Sun enters Mesha (sidereal, Lahiri). The date in 21 cities, computed for local sunrise, with the tithi times.
The cities split across Mon, 13 Apr and Tue, 14 Apr 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 14 April 2026 | Tue, 14 Apr, 1:42 pm | same day |
| Melbourne | Tuesday 14 April 2026 | Tue, 14 Apr, 1:42 pm | same day |
| Brisbane | Tuesday 14 April 2026 | Tue, 14 Apr, 1:42 pm | same day |
| Perth | Tuesday 14 April 2026 | Tue, 14 Apr, 11:42 am | same day |
| Adelaide | Tuesday 14 April 2026 | Tue, 14 Apr, 1:12 pm | same day |
| Canberra | Tuesday 14 April 2026 | Tue, 14 Apr, 1:42 pm | same day |
| Hobart | Tuesday 14 April 2026 | Tue, 14 Apr, 1:42 pm | same day |
| Darwin | Tuesday 14 April 2026 | Tue, 14 Apr, 1:12 pm | same day |
| Auckland | Tuesday 14 April 2026 | Tue, 14 Apr, 3:42 pm | same day |
| Nepal | |||
| Kathmandu | Tuesday 14 April 2026 | Tue, 14 Apr, 9:27 am | — |
| United States | |||
| New York | Monday 13 April 2026 | Mon, 13 Apr, 11:42 pm | Tue, 14 Apr |
| Dallas–Fort Worth | Monday 13 April 2026 | Mon, 13 Apr, 10:42 pm | Tue, 14 Apr |
| Houston | Monday 13 April 2026 | Mon, 13 Apr, 10:42 pm | Tue, 14 Apr |
| Chicago | Monday 13 April 2026 | Mon, 13 Apr, 10:42 pm | Tue, 14 Apr |
| Washington DC | Monday 13 April 2026 | Mon, 13 Apr, 11:42 pm | Tue, 14 Apr |
| Boston | Monday 13 April 2026 | Mon, 13 Apr, 11:42 pm | Tue, 14 Apr |
| Atlanta | Monday 13 April 2026 | Mon, 13 Apr, 11:42 pm | Tue, 14 Apr |
| San Francisco Bay Area | Monday 13 April 2026 | Mon, 13 Apr, 8:42 pm | Tue, 14 Apr |
| Los Angeles | Monday 13 April 2026 | Mon, 13 Apr, 8:42 pm | Tue, 14 Apr |
| Seattle | Monday 13 April 2026 | Mon, 13 Apr, 8:42 pm | Tue, 14 Apr |
Rule: civil day of the Sun’s sidereal ingress. Sun enters sidereal Mesha; Baisakh 1 in Nepal (Bikram Sambat), Vaisakhi in Punjab, Tamil/Bengali/Malayali solar new years around this date.
The Sun enters sidereal Mesha (Aries). In Nepal it is Baisakh 1 and the new year of the Bikram Sambat, a public holiday with the Bisket Jatra of Bhaktapur running alongside. The same ingress is Vaisakhi in Punjab, the founding day of the Khalsa in 1699, and the solar new year of Tamil Nadu (Puthandu), Kerala (Vishu), Assam (Bohag Bihu) and Bengal.
Family meals, temple visits and, in Bhaktapur, the chariot and the tongue-piercing of Bisket Jatra.
Tuesday 14 April 2026. Sun enters Mesha (sidereal, Lahiri); the tithi runs Tue, 14 Apr, 1:42 pm to Sydney time.
Tuesday 14 April 2026 in Kathmandu. Sun enters Mesha (sidereal, Lahiri); the tithi runs Tue, 14 Apr, 9:27 am to Nepal time.
Monday 13 April 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. 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, 13 Apr and Tue, 14 Apr.
Sun and Moon positions from Meeus' algorithms with the Lahiri ayanamsa, amanta lunar months named by the solar ingress inside them, and the civil day of the Sun’s sidereal ingress. Tithi boundaries are accurate to a few minutes; a boundary within minutes of sunrise is worth checking against your temple's panchang.
Other years: Nepali New Year (Bikram Sambat) 2027. Nearby: Holi (colours) · Ram Navami · all festivals.
See also: the full-year calendar by city · why festival dates differ between Nepal, India and Australia.
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