What to do at Hornbill Festival: 15 things worth your day

What to do at the Hornbill Festival: watch the morning and afternoon cultural performances in the arena, walk all the tribe morungs, eat across the food stalls, shop the crafts, and stay for the evening concerts and the night carnival in Kohima. One full day covers the festival; two or three let you add day trips to Khonoma, Dzükou or the villages.

The 15 things worth doing

1. The arena performances (mornings and afternoons). Every tribe performs on the main schedule: war dances, folk songs, games of skill. Arrive by opening time for front-section seats; the 1-2pm slot carries the biggest acts.
2. Walk all the morungs. Each tribe builds its traditional hut at Kisama. Inside: food, brews, artefacts and conversations. This is the real festival; afternoons are for talking, not photographing.
3. Eat your way across the food stalls. Smoked pork with bamboo shoot, axone chutneys, galho, and the famous Naga chilli everything. Our food guide maps the stalls.
4. Try the local brews responsibly. Rice beer by the bamboo mug, tribe by tribe, each with its own taste.
5. Shop the crafts bazaar. Shawls with rank patterns, wood carving, beadwork. Buy from stalls inside morungs for provenance.
6. Watch the Naga wrestling and traditional games. The sport events are free with entry and fiercely contested.
7. See the hornbill-themed photo points. The great hornbill is the festival’s namesake; why the bird matters.
8. Attend the Indigenous Artists’ performances. Traditional music fused with modern forms, on the festival’s second stage.
9. Stay for the evening cultural fusion shows. The arena lights up after dark; different troupes every night.
10. Do the Kohima night carnival. The whole town centre becomes a street market: food, clothes, music, till late. This is where Kohima’s evenings happen in festival week.
11. Take the World War II cemetery morning. Kohima’s war cemetery is 15 minutes away and worth the quiet hour.
12. Day-trip to Khonoma. The green village is 20km away; terraces, village gates and the conservation story.
13. Trek Dzükou if your legs agree. Serious travellers do the valley trek before or after festival days; December weather is cold but clear.
14. Collect the festivals-within-festival. Hornbill hosts Motor Rally, Hornbill International Photo Fest, film screenings and more; check the daily schedule board at Kisama.
15. Book next year before you leave. Stays for the next December open early; our packages sell out weeks ahead.

Quick answers

How many days do you need at Hornbill? Two full festival days cover the arena and morungs properly; three to five lets you add villages and treks. See our best days guide.

What happens at the Hornbill Festival? Cultural performances by every Naga tribe, morung visits, food and craft stalls, indigenous music, sports, evening concerts and a night carnival in Kohima, every December 1–10 at Kisama.

Is one day enough? You can see the arena and a handful of morungs in one day, but you will miss the food trail and the evening events. Two days is the honest minimum.

Planning your days at Kisama? Message us your dates and we will build the festival week around the performances that matter, packages from ₹3,999.