Bay Area Navratri & Diwali 2026: Garba, Dates, Puja

For the Bay Area’s large Indian and Hindu communities, the next five weeks are not one festival but a sequence: Garba nights begin before Navratri, Shardiya Navratri runs Oct. 11–19, Dussehra is Oct. 20, Diwali falls Nov. 8 in San Francisco, and Gujarati New Year follows Nov. 9. This page is SF News Today’s running Bay Area calendar and will be updated as more Garba nights, temple programs, Diwali melas and parties are announced.

One important calendar point: Hindu festival dates and puja windows are calculated locally from the lunar calendar. A Bay Area date can differ from the date relatives are observing in India. The puja times below are specifically for San Francisco, California, using a location-adjusted panchang; local temples and family traditions may follow additional rules.

The quick 2026 Bay Area festival calendar

Date	Festival / event	What to know
Fri. Oct. 9	GCA Bay Area Raas Garba	7:30–11:30 p.m. in Fremont; GCA lists member entry and ticketing for non-members.
Sat. Oct. 10	Free Bollywood Garba at Union Square	11 a.m.–1 p.m. lessons, 1–2 p.m. open dance party; free, all ages and beginner-friendly.
Sat. Oct. 10	GCA Bay Area Raas Garba	7:30–11:30 p.m. in Fremont.
Sun. Oct. 11	Navratri begins	Day 1: Ghatasthapana and Shailputri Puja. San Francisco Ghatasthapana window: 7:15–9 a.m. PDT.
Oct. 11–20	Fremont Hindu Temple Garba & Dandiya	The temple calendar lists Garba and Dandiya across the Navratri period; check the temple’s daily calendar before going.
Fri. Oct. 16	GCA Bay Area Raas Garba	7:30–11:30 p.m. in Fremont.
Sat. Oct. 17	GCA Bay Area Raas Garba	7:30–11:30 p.m.; verify the event page for the current venue details.
Sun. Oct. 18	Durga Ashtami	Mahagauri Puja; San Francisco Sandhi Puja is listed for 9:57–10:45 p.m. PDT.
Mon. Oct. 19	Maha Navami	Siddhidatri / Maha Navami observances; Navami Homa is also observed.
Tue. Oct. 20	Vijayadashami / Dussehra	San Francisco Vijay Muhurat: 2:45–3:29 p.m. PDT.
Fri. Oct. 23	GCA Bay Area Raas Garba	7:30–11:30 p.m. in Fremont.
Sat. Oct. 24	FOG Diwali Mela, Fremont	10 a.m.–7 p.m. at Washington High School; organizer pages currently differ on admission pricing, so confirm before leaving.
Sat. Oct. 24	GCA Bay Area Raas Garba	7:30–11:30 p.m. in Fremont.
Fri. Nov. 6	Dhanteras / Dhantrayodashi	San Francisco Dhanteras Puja Muhurat: 5:32–7:22 p.m. PST.
Sat. Nov. 7	Narak Chaturdashi	Also associated with Choti Diwali / Kali Puja in different regional traditions.
Sat. Nov. 7	Presidio Diwali + Día de los Muertos	Free family program, noon–3 p.m. at Presidio Tunnel Tops.
Sun. Nov. 8	Diwali / Lakshmi Puja	San Francisco Lakshmi Puja Muhurat: 5:24–7:15 p.m. PST.
Mon. Nov. 9	Govardhan Puja / Annakut / Gujarati New Year	For Gujarati families, this is Bestu Varas — the start of the new year in the Gujarati calendar.
Tue. Nov. 10	Bhai Dooj / Bhau Beej	A day centered on the sibling bond; also Yama Dwitiya and Chitragupta Puja in some traditions.
Sat. Nov. 14	Labh Panchami	Especially significant in Gujarati business tradition as an auspicious day to resume work and open accounts after Diwali.

The free Union Square Garba is the first big San Francisco date

The most immediately useful San Francisco event is Bollywood Garba at Union Square on Saturday, Oct. 10, one day before the local panchang start of Navratri. Union Square says Rang de Bollywood will teach Bolly-Garba from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., followed by a 1–2 p.m. dance party. It is free, open to all ages and explicitly designed for beginners as well as experienced dancers.

Because the event falls before Day 1 of Navratri in San Francisco, think of it as a public kickoff rather than one of the nine calendar nights. That makes it especially useful for first-timers who want to learn the rhythm and basic footwork before the main Garba season.

Why Garba is more than a dance party

Garba is rooted in Gujarat and is traditionally performed during Navratri as a devotional dance around the feminine divine, or Shakti. UNESCO, which placed Garba of Gujarat on its Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2023, describes dancers circling a lit earthen pot or an image of the mother goddess Amba. The lamp at the center gives the celebration a spiritual axis: the dancers move around it together rather than simply facing a stage.

Modern Bay Area Garba can range from temple-centered devotional gatherings to large ticketed concerts and Bollywood-inflected parties. The social form changes, but the Navratri connection — worship of the divine feminine across nine nights — remains the reason the season exists.

Navratri 2026: all nine days in San Francisco

For San Francisco, Shardiya Navratri begins Sunday, Oct. 11 and the nine nights run through Monday, Oct. 19, followed by Vijayadashami on Oct. 20. The daily colors below are a popular custom, especially in Gujarati and Maharashtrian communities; they are festive tradition, not a universal religious requirement.

Day	Date	Navdurga form / observance	2026 color	Spiritual theme
1	Oct. 11	Shailputri · Ghatasthapana	Orange	Grounding, beginnings and steadiness.
2	Oct. 12	Brahmacharini	White	Discipline, devotion and inner resolve.
3	Oct. 13	Chandraghanta	Red	Courage and readiness to confront fear.
4	Oct. 14	Kushmanda	Royal Blue	Creative energy and illumination.
5	Oct. 15	Skandamata	Yellow	Care, compassion and the protective mother.
6	Oct. 16	Katyayani · Saraswati Avahan	Green	Strength, purpose and righteous action.
7	Oct. 17	Kalaratri · Saraswati Puja	Grey	Facing darkness and removing fear and ignorance.
8	Oct. 18	Mahagauri · Durga Ashtami	Purple	Purification, renewal and grace.
9	Oct. 19	Maha Navami · Siddhidatri	Peacock Green	Completion, blessing and spiritual accomplishment.

Key Navratri puja times for San Francisco

Ghatasthapana — Sunday, Oct. 11: 7:15–9 a.m. PDT. Drik Panchang also lists an Abhijit window of 12:33–1:19 p.m. PDT.
Sandhi Puja — Sunday, Oct. 18: 9:57–10:45 p.m. PDT, at the transition from Ashtami toward Navami.
Vijayadashami — Tuesday, Oct. 20: Vijay Muhurat 2:45–3:29 p.m. PDT; Aparahna Puja 2–4:13 p.m. PDT.

If your family observes a particular sampradaya, regional calendar or temple tradition, use that practice as the final authority. Panchang calculations can vary slightly by method, and a priest may recommend a narrower window for a specific household puja.

Want to learn Garba before Oct. 10?

Two useful beginner videos are available free on YouTube: Pebbles Gujarati’s Garba steps for beginners and MGS Dance Studio’s basic Garba steps. Start with the two-step and simple clapping patterns; once those feel natural, add turns. For a public Garba circle, matching the group’s direction and rhythm matters more than performing complicated choreography.

Confirmed Bay Area Garba nights we are tracking

The strongest confirmed recurring calendar currently comes from the Gujarati Cultural Association of Bay Area, which lists Raas Garba nights on Oct. 9, 10, 16, 17, 23 and 24, generally from 7:30–11:30 p.m. GCA’s individual event pages provide the latest venue and ticket links. Fremont Hindu Temple separately lists Garba & Dandiya from Oct. 11 through Oct. 20 alongside its Navratri and Durga Puja observances.

This is intentionally a live tracker. SF News Today will add Bay Area university Garbas, South Bay parties, temple programs and Diwali events as organizers publish reliable dates and ticket information rather than padding the list with unverified social posts.

Diwali 2026: the Bay Area dates are Nov. 5–10

In the San Francisco panchang, the Diwali sequence begins with Govatsa Dwadashi on Nov. 5, followed by Dhanteras on Nov. 6, Narak Chaturdashi on Nov. 7, Lakshmi Puja and Diwali on Nov. 8, Govardhan Puja and Gujarati New Year on Nov. 9, and Bhai Dooj on Nov. 10. Regional practice differs: some communities describe the festival as five days, others begin a day earlier, and Gujarati observance extends into Labh Panchami.

What each Diwali day means

Date	Observance	Spiritual / family significance
Nov. 5	Govatsa Dwadashi / Vasu Baras	Gratitude for nourishment and the cow; in some communities this opens the Diwali period.
Nov. 6	Dhanteras / Dhantrayodashi	Lakshmi and Kubera are worshipped for prosperity; Dhanvantari is honored in connection with health and Ayurveda.
Nov. 7	Narak Chaturdashi	A day associated with overcoming darkness, impurity and the story of Krishna’s victory over Narakasura; regional Kali Puja traditions also fall in this period.
Nov. 8	Diwali / Lakshmi Puja	The central night of lamps, prayer, family gathering and the victory of light, knowledge and dharma over darkness and ignorance.
Nov. 9	Govardhan Puja / Annakut / Gujarati New Year	Annakut food offerings honor Krishna; Gujarati families mark Bestu Varas and the beginning of a new year.
Nov. 10	Bhai Dooj / Bhau Beej	Sisters and brothers honor their bond, with variations across regions.

What time is Diwali puja in San Francisco in 2026?

For Sunday, Nov. 8, Drik Panchang’s San Francisco calculation gives a Lakshmi Puja Muhurat of 5:24–7:15 p.m. PST. The broader Pradosh period is listed as 5:04–7:48 p.m., with Vrishabha Kaal overlapping from 5:24–7:15 p.m. Amavasya begins at 9:57 p.m. on Nov. 7 and ends at 11:01 p.m. on Nov. 8.

For Dhanteras on Friday, Nov. 6, the San Francisco Dhanteras Puja Muhurat is 5:32–7:22 p.m. PST. The panchang places that window within Pradosh Kaal while Vrishabha Lagna prevails.

Those times are local to San Francisco and already account for daylight-saving time. California returns to standard time on Nov. 1, so the November windows are in PST, not PDT.

Diwali events already announced around the Bay Area

FOG Diwali Mela — Fremont, Oct. 24: 10 a.m.–7 p.m. at Washington High School, with performances, Ramleela/Ramayana programming, Garba and Dandiya, food, shopping and Lakshmi Puja. The organizer’s own pages currently differ on whether entry is free registration or a small paid ticket, so check the current registration page before going.
Día de los Muertos + Diwali — Presidio Tunnel Tops, Nov. 7: a free noon–3 p.m. family event with performances, arts and crafts, ceremony, storytelling and cultural dance.
Diwali at Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose — Nov. 7: special programming from 10 a.m.–2 p.m. with diya-making, rangoli, music and dance; check the museum’s admission rules when planning the visit.

Why Diwali has several stories — and why that is normal

Diwali is not built around only one narrative. Many Hindu families connect it with the return of Rama, Sita and Lakshmana to Ayodhya; others emphasize Krishna’s defeat of Narakasura, Lakshmi Puja, Kali Puja, the Pandavas’ return, harvest traditions or other regional histories. Jains, Sikhs and some Buddhists also observe Diwali through distinct traditions. The common visual language of lamps reflects themes of knowledge over ignorance, hope over despair and dharma over disorder, but the theological emphasis can vary by family and region.

When is Gujarati New Year in the Bay Area?

For San Francisco in 2026, Gujarati New Year falls Monday, Nov. 9, on the same local calendar day as Govardhan Puja, Annakut and Bali Pratipada. Gujarati families often call the new year Bestu Varas. It is a day for temple visits, greetings, new beginnings, visiting family and — especially in business communities — beginning the year with auspicious accounts and intentions.

There is no single “Hindu New Year” observed by every Hindu community on the same date. Different regional calendars begin the year at different times. Here, “New Year” refers specifically to the Gujarati calendar because that is the observance most directly connected to the Bay Area Garba and Gujarati community calendar tracked on this page.

A related Gujarati date is Labh Panchami on Saturday, Nov. 14, traditionally associated with reopening businesses and beginning work after the Diwali break. We will keep this page live through that weekend because many Bay Area community events are scheduled before or after the exact lunar festival dates.

How to use this page

Bookmark this guide if you are looking for Bay Area Garba 2026, Navratri events, Diwali parties, temple programs, puja timings or Gujarati New Year dates. We will update the same URL as new verified events appear. If you are organizing a public Bay Area Garba, Navratri or Diwali event and have a confirmed date, venue and official registration link, send it to tips@sfnewstoday.com.

Bay Area Navratri & Diwali 2026: Garba Events, Dates & Puja Times