Festival of lights
Diwali in Fiji 2026
Diwali 2026: Sunday, 8 November 2026
Dates and venues checked against the organisers’ own pages on .
Diwali 2026 in Fiji is on Sunday, 8 November 2026. The sun sets at 6:19 pm in Lautoka. Lakshmi Puja is performed in the evening after sunset, in the pradosh period — roughly the first two and a half hours after it; the lamps are lit as it gets dark.
Diwali in Fiji is a public holiday on Monday 9 November 2026, a day later than the Sunday 8 November on which most countries keep it. Cabinet endorsed the date among the year’s eleven public holidays and the Government Gazette of 9 October confirmed it, as the Fiji Times and Fiji Sun reported, and Drik Panchang’s calendar for Suva puts Lakshmi Puja on the Monday as well, with Dhanteras on Friday 6 November and Naraka Chaturdashi on Sunday 8 November. The day is kept at the temples, at home, and in schools and offices that hold their own programmes — the TISI Sangam’s Sri Siva Subramaniya Swami Temple in Nadi and the Sri Raj Maha Mariamman Temple on Howell Road in Suva among them — and on 22 October Shree Sanatan Dharm Pratinidhi Sabha of Fiji asked businesses and Government bodies that hold Diwali functions to respect the festival’s religious meaning and to leave out alcohol and meat.
No council, temple or Sabha programme for Suva or Lautoka had been published by 30 October. Fireworks are tied to set hours: the fireworks rules under the Explosives Act allow them from 5pm to 10pm on ordinary days and until midnight on Diwali, buyers must be 18, shops need a licence from the Mineral Resources Department and homemade fireworks are banned; police and the Department have restated the Diwali hours each year, but a 2026 notice had not been found by 30 October.
Sunset on Diwali 2026 in Fiji
Sunday, 8 November 2026 · local time, worked out for each city centre
Diwali 2026 dates
Friday, 6 November
Dhanteras
Saturday, 7 November
Naraka Chaturdashi (Choti Diwali)
Sunday, 8 November
Diwali — Lakshmi Puja
Monday, 9 November
Govardhan Puja and Annakut
Tuesday, 10 November
Bhai Dooj
Diwali events in Fiji0 listed
Where to celebrate Diwali in Fiji, city by city
Diwali in Suva
Suva keeps Diwali at its temples, among them the Sri Raj Maha Mariamman Temple on Howell Road, at home, and in schools and offices, which held their own celebrations in 2025. The holiday is Monday 9 November 2026, with Dhanteras on Friday 6 November and Naraka Chaturdashi on Sunday 8 November by the Suva panchang; no council or temple programme for 2026 had been published by 30 October.
Diwali in Lautoka
Lautoka marks Diwali with office and community functions — the Sugar Cane Growers Council and Fund held one in 2025 — and with fireworks, which the Fiji Times has photographed over the city in past years. On the holiday, Monday 9 November 2026, the rules allow them from 5pm to midnight; no Lautoka programme for 2026 had been published by 30 October.
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What Diwali is
The biggest night of the Indian year: lamps, sweets, new clothes and fireworks. Abroad it is celebrated over the surrounding weekends, with one large public event in most big cities.
Diwali marks the return of Rama to Ayodhya and the victory of light over darkness; for many families it is also the day of Lakshmi Puja and the start of a new business year. Homes are cleaned and lit with diyas, sweets are exchanged, and the evening ends with fireworks.
If it is your first one in Fiji
- Book restaurant tables two weeks ahead — the Diwali weekend fills every Indian restaurant in town.
- Check local fireworks rules before buying any; most European towns restrict them to New Year.
- Sweets (mithai) can be ordered from Indian grocers a week ahead; many deliver nationwide.
- The big city events sell tickets in advance and sell out; children under a certain age are usually free.
Questions people ask
- When is Diwali 2026 in Fiji?
- Diwali 2026 falls on Sunday, 8 November 2026. Diwali is a public holiday in Fiji on Monday 9 November 2026, a day after most countries keep it — the date Cabinet endorsed and the Government Gazette of 9 October confirmed. Events are listed on this page as organisers post them, usually four to six weeks ahead.
- What time is sunset on Diwali 2026 in Fiji?
- On Sunday, 8 November 2026, the sun sets at 6:19 pm in Lautoka and 6:15 pm in Suva. The times are worked out for each city centre with a flat horizon, as every published table gives them; behind buildings or hills it appears a few minutes later. Lakshmi Puja is performed in the evening after sunset, in the pradosh period — roughly the first two and a half hours after it; the lamps are lit as it gets dark.
- Where can I celebrate Diwali in Fiji?
- Diwali in Fiji is a public holiday on Monday 9 November 2026, a day later than the Sunday 8 November on which most countries keep it. Cabinet endorsed the date among the year’s eleven public holidays and the Government Gazette of 9 October confirmed it, as the Fiji Times and Fiji Sun reported, and Drik Panchang’s calendar for Suva puts Lakshmi Puja on the Monday as well, with Dhanteras on Friday 6 November and Naraka Chaturdashi on Sunday 8 November. The day is kept at the temples, at home, and in schools and offices that hold their own programmes — the TISI Sangam’s Sri Siva Subramaniya Swami Temple in Nadi and the Sri Raj Maha Mariamman Temple on Howell Road in Suva among them — and on 22 October Shree Sanatan Dharm Pratinidhi Sabha of Fiji asked businesses and Government bodies that hold Diwali functions to respect the festival’s religious meaning and to leave out alcohol and meat.
- Can non-Indians go to Diwali events in Fiji?
- Yes. Almost every community event is open to everyone and runs in English; temple and gurdwara celebrations welcome visitors too — dress modestly, and cover your head in a gurdwara.
- Is Diwali a public holiday in Fiji in 2026?
- Yes. Diwali is a public holiday on Monday 9 November 2026. Cabinet endorsed the date in September 2025, and the Government Gazette of 9 October 2026, published under the Employment Relations Act 2007, confirms it among eleven public holidays for the year (the same notice moved Fiji Day to Monday 12 October).
- What date is Diwali in Fiji in 2026?
- Monday 9 November 2026, a day after the Sunday 8 November that most countries keep. Drik Panchang’s calendar for Suva gives Dhanteras on Friday 6 November, Naraka Chaturdashi on Sunday 8 November, Lakshmi Puja and Diwali on Monday 9 November and Govardhan Puja on Tuesday 10 November.
- Are fireworks allowed for Diwali in Fiji?
- Within set hours. Under the fireworks rules made under the Explosives Act, fireworks may be used from 5pm to 10pm, with an exception for Diwali, when police and the Mineral Resources Department have announced 5pm to midnight in recent years. Buyers must be 18, traders need a licence from the Department and homemade fireworks are banned. A 2026 notice had not been found by 30 October.
- Where is Diwali celebrated in Suva and Lautoka?
- In the temples, homes, schools and offices. Suva’s Mariamman temple on Howell Road and Nadi’s Sri Siva Subramaniya Swami Temple are the main ones, and in 2025 Lautoka offices held their own functions. No council, temple or Sabha programme for Suva or Lautoka had been published for 2026 by 30 October.
- What has Sanatan Fiji said about Diwali functions in 2026?
- Yes. On 22 October Shree Sanatan Dharm Pratinidhi Sabha of Fiji asked businesses, Government institutions and event organisers hosting functions presented as traditional Hindu Diwali celebrations to understand the festival’s spiritual meaning and to refrain from serving alcohol and meat, and encouraged Hindus to keep the day with prayer, vegetarian food and charity.
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