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Shigmo: Goa’s spring festival of drums and floats
Drums at every door, then floats of gods and heroes rolling down the main street
Shigmo is the Hindu spring festival of Goa, which takes in Holi. It comes in two halves: drum parties going door to door in the villages around the Phalguna full moon, then about two weeks of evening float parades, one or two towns a night, with carved floats of Ramayana and Mahabharata scenes. In 2026 the state parades ran from 5 to 18 March across 19 towns. The 2027 schedule is announced by Goa’s Department of Tourism in late January or early February; with Holi on 23 March 2027, the parades should start in the last days of March.
Goa's Department of Tourism announces the town-by-town parade dates in late January or early February.
Where to celebrate
Two festivals in one
Shigmo has nothing to do with the beach, and that is its charm. The older half is in the villages: around the full moon of Phalguna, drum parties carry dhol and taso drums from door to door, and villagers gather to sing naman, songs in chorus. This village Shigmo is a community rite more than a show, and it is the better part of the festival if you can reach it.
Then the government takes over the main streets. Each town gets one evening. Folk troupes walk ahead with drums, flags and dancers, and behind them roll floats carved and painted with scenes from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, tall figures of gods and heroes lit against the night. Families line the road from late afternoon, children on shoulders, and the thud of the drums reaches you before the first float does. In Panaji the parade runs from the Old Secretariat along the riverfront to the Campal ground, from 16:00 to 22:00 in 2026.
Parade schedule, 2026
Government of Goa schedule for 2026, as an example of how the towns rotate. The 2027 order and dates will be published separately.
| 5 March | Ponda |
| 6 March | Calangute |
| 7 March | Panaji |
| 8 March | Mapusa |
| 9 March | Curchorem |
| 10 March | Bicholim |
| 11 March | Sanquelim |
| 12 March | Shiroda, Sanguem |
| 13 March | Dharbandora, Cuncolim |
| 14 March | Margao |
| 15 March | Vasco, Porvorim |
| 16 March | Valpoi |
| 17 March | Quepem, Pernem |
| 18 March | Canacona, Mandrem |
✅ How to see it
Watching the parades costs nothing; the planning is all about which town on which night.
- Stay inland — Panaji or Ponda rather than a beach: the parades are in town centres and move around the state, and from the middle you can reach most of them.
- Arrive two days early — Check the published schedule for which town parades when; each gets only one evening.
- Take your spot early — Main roads fill from late afternoon. In Panaji the riverfront between the Old Secretariat and Campal is the stretch to aim for.
- Village naman: only with a local — The naman evenings are community rites, not performances. Go only with someone from the village, and ask at the temple first.
- Book the parade town — Nothing needs a ticket, but rooms in the town on its parade night fill. Book about six weeks ahead, and trains too: the first parades follow straight after Holi, when trains to Goa run full.
Which evening to choose
The Panaji and Margao parades are the peak evenings. Ponda, Mapusa, Vasco and the smaller inland towns such as Sanguem, Curchorem and Valpoi each have their own night on the circuit. Day-by-day plan for the state: [Shigmo in Goa](/en/festivals/shigmo-goa/goa/).
Shigmo pairs well with the [Goa Carnival](/en/festivals/goa-carnival/), a few weeks earlier, with Old Goa, and with the temple circuit around Ponda. By the last parade evening, when the floats are wheeled away and the drums go quiet on a hot March night, the season has turned.
❓ FAQ
When is Shigmo in 2027?
The dates are not announced yet. Goa’s Department of Tourism publishes the town-by-town schedule in late January or early February. The parades usually start a day or two after Holi, which falls on 23 March 2027, and run for about two weeks, sometimes into early April.
In which state is Shigmo celebrated?
In Goa. It is the Hindu Goan spring festival, also called Shishirotsav.
Where are the Shigmo parades held?
In 2026 in 19 town centres, from Ponda, Panaji and Mapusa to Margao, Vasco and Canacona, each on its own evening. The village Shigmo happens across rural Goa around the Phalguna full moon.
Is Shigmo the same as the Goa Carnival?
No. The Carnival is the Catholic pre-Lent festival a few weeks earlier; Shigmo is Hindu, follows Holi and draws on the epics and village traditions.