Shirdi Weather And Best Time To Visit Shirdi

Shirdi is a very significant pilgrim centre in the country and thousands of pilgrims from around the world gather at Shirdi to have the darshan of Shirdi Sai Baba. Apart from the Sri Shirdi Sai Baba Sansthan temple, there are a number of holy places like Shani Shingnapur and the temples of Nashik, that are renowned pilgrim centres around Shirdi.

Though pilgrims do not generally wait for the best weather to visit Shirdi, it is always better to choose the ideal months as you might want to call on more touristy places in the vicinity and as the temple has footfall throughout the year. Shirdi is surrounded by lush fertile regions of the Western Ghats and apart from visiting the religious places, you might also want to revel in the natural charms of nature. The most ideal months to visit Shirdi are the winter months between October to February.

Summers are hot and dry and are generally considered off season for tourism. The temperature averages 21°C to 42°C and the heat might put you off from waiting in long queues for darshan or visiting the temple towns close by.

But Shirdi is usually busy in summer with quite a number of pilgrims and tourists visiting the town in spite of the heat, for the Sri Rama Navami festivities in March or April that has a grand celebration with colourful processions, special darshan and devotional songs. If you are travelling to Shirdi in summer, keep yourself hydrated with plenty of water and tender coconuts. Shirdi and the neighbouring towns like Rahata, are known for cultivation of pomegranates and guavas. You find plenty of these fruits in Shirdi and you could binge on sliced and salted guavas and pomegranate juice during summer. 

Monsoon experiences intermittent to heavy showers from the month of June through September. Monsoon does make the region very charming, with a cool breeze and light showers in the months at the start and end of the season. July and August have rather heavy downpours and you might find travelling a damper. But monsoons do have their own festivities and Guru Pournima that is celebrated in July has a lot of people visiting the Mandir for the darshan of Sai Baba who is considered their spiritual master. The three day festivities are conducted with fervour, in spite of the rains and include a nonstop reading of the Sai Satcharitra.

Monsoons are also good if you would like to plan a holiday time at the hill stations near Shirdi. Keep a raincoat or umbrella handy for a sudden downpour.

Winter months are very pleasant, dry and cool and you will have a blissful time visiting the temples and touring the township. You could also visit the plethora of temples located a little away from the town of Shirdi. A lovely, breezy winter season would present no hassles if you are looking for a peaceful pilgrimage as well as a tourist trip. It might turn rather cold at nights with the temperatures likely to drop to 7° C and you might want keep ponchos and sweaters handy.

Dussehra is celebrated along with Sri Sai Punyathithi in the month of October, and it sees pilgrimage to Shirdi at its peak season. The Samadhi Mandir remains open all night and the soulful music of bhajans and qawali ring through cool, wintery evenings of Shirdi. You might have to book darshan tickets and accommodations in advance. Winter's a great time to visit the hill stations near Shirdi.