Shillong Cherry Blossom Festival 2026: Lineup, Tickets, Venue and Travel Guide

The Shillong Cherry Blossom Festival 2026 takes place on 20 and 21 November 2026 at the New Shillong Highland Grounds in Mahmawdkuk, about 30 minutes from Shillong city. The confirmed international headliners are Khalid, Swae Lee and Boys Like Girls, and single-day tickets start at Rs 2,500.

It is the only major music festival in India timed to a cherry bloom. Meghalaya's Himalayan cherry trees flower in autumn rather than spring, so for a few weeks every November Shillong's streets turn pink just as the festival arrives. This guide covers the lineup, tickets, the new venue, how to get there, where to stay and where to see the blossoms themselves.

Key takeaways

• Dates: Friday 20 and Saturday 21 November 2026.
• Venue: the new permanent festival ground in New Shillong, not the old Polo Grounds in the city centre.
• Tickets are sold only on RockskiTickets.com, from Rs 2,500 for a single day including taxes.
• The trees bloom across the city, so you can see the blossoms for free even without a festival ticket.
• Shillong hotels fill up for festival weekend. Book your stay and your Guwahati transfer early.

Cherry Blossom Festival 2026 lineup

Three international headliners are confirmed for 2026:

• Khalid, the American R&B and pop singer behind hits such as "Location" and "Talk".
• Swae Lee, the rapper and singer known for "Sunflower" and his work as one half of Rae Sremmurd.
• Boys Like Girls, the American pop-punk band behind "The Great Escape".

When the venue was announced at the end of August, the organisers said two more international headliners would follow, which would take the total to five. Indian and Northeast artists also fill the lineup across both days. Check the official ticketing page for the final running order before you travel.

For context, the 2025 edition featured Jason Derulo, The Script, Tyga and Diplo, so the festival now draws acts that usually only play India's biggest cities.

Tickets and prices

Tickets are sold exclusively on RockskiTickets. Sales opened on 4 September 2026, and single-day passes start at Rs 2,500 including taxes, according to The Shillong Times.

A few tips:

• Buy from the official site only. Resale tickets on social media are a common scam around big festivals.
• Decide early whether you want one day or both. Popular tiers for the headliner day tend to sell first.
• Carry the ID used for booking, and read the entry rules on the ticket page for bags, re-entry and age limits.

The new venue: New Shillong Highland Grounds

From 2026 the festival has a permanent home at the New Shillong Highland Grounds in Mahmawdkuk, a site the Meghalaya government set aside for large events. Earlier editions were held at the Polo Grounds in central Shillong.

The move matters for your planning. The venue is roughly 30 minutes from the city, with multiple entry and exit points, parking and a dedicated traffic plan for the festival weekend. The upside is more space and fewer city jams. The catch is that you need a way back to your hotel late at night.

Plan your return before the show starts. Either keep your taxi for the evening, use any official shuttle the organisers announce, or stay somewhere close to New Shillong. Taxis will be in heavy demand once the headliners finish.

Where to see the cherry blossoms in Shillong

The trees are wild Himalayan cherry (Prunus cerasoides), which flowers in autumn. You will find them all over the city, and seeing them costs nothing.

Good places to start:

• Ward's Lake in the city centre, where blossoms frame the water and the old bridge.
• The area around the Shillong Golf Course and Polo Grounds, which has some of the densest stretches of trees.
• The road towards Upper Shillong, where pink trees line the hills on the way to Shillong Peak.

Bloom timing shifts a little each year with the weather, and some streets peak earlier than others. Mornings bring the best light and the fewest people, and your driver or hotel staff will know which streets are in full bloom that week. Our guide to things to do in Shillong has more ideas for the rest of your time in the city.

How to reach Shillong for the festival

Most visitors fly into Guwahati and drive about 100 km to Shillong, which takes around 3 to 3.5 hours depending on traffic. Shillong also has a small airport at Umroi, but it has few flights, so Guwahati is the practical choice.

For festival weekend:

• Arrive a day early. Thursday 19 November is ideal. The Guwahati to Shillong road gets busy on Friday afternoon.
• Pre-book your cab. Shared taxis run from Guwahati, but a private cab gives you flexibility with luggage and late arrivals.
• Allow time at Jorabat, the busy junction where the Guwahati road enters Meghalaya.

If you read about taxi trouble on this route in August 2026, it has been resolved. A dispute between Assam and Meghalaya taxi operators briefly disrupted the Guwahati to Shillong corridor, but both states reached an agreement and set up a joint panel to prevent harassment. Meghalaya's tourism minister said in late September that tourist traffic was back to normal. Our Guwahati to Shillong route guide covers the drive, stops and timings in detail.

Where to stay during the festival

Book early. Shillong has limited hotel stock, and festival weekend brings visitors from across the Northeast and beyond.

If you like the idea of a family-run stay, our list of homestays in Meghalaya is a good starting point.

Weather and what to pack

November is one of the best months in Meghalaya: dry, clear and cool. Days are comfortable in the sun, but evenings at an open-air venue get cold, often dropping close to single digits.

• A warm jacket or fleece for the evening sets
• Comfortable shoes for standing and walking on grass
• A light rain layer, since hill weather can change
• A power bank and some cash for food stalls

The full list is in our Meghalaya packing guide.

Make a trip of it: a 4-day plan

The festival covers two evenings, so it is worth building a short Meghalaya trip around it.

1. Thursday: Fly into Guwahati, drive to Shillong, and have an easy evening at Police Bazar.
2. Friday: Morning cherry blossom walk around Ward's Lake and the Golf Course area. Head to the festival in the afternoon.
3. Saturday: Day trip to Umiam Lake or Shillong Peak, then back to the festival for the second night.
4. Sunday: Drive back to Guwahati for your flight, or continue to Sohra (Cherrapunji) and Dawki for the waterfalls and the clear Umngot river.

If you want to add a few days, our Meghalaya tour packages combine Shillong with Cherrapunji, Dawki and the living root bridges, and we can build the transfers around the festival dates.