Where To Celebrate Diwali 2024 In London

This is London’s biggest Diwali event and one not to be missed. Around 35,000 revellers descend on Trafalgar Square to celebrate the Hindu, Sikh and Jain Festival of Light, where you’ll find a sensory kaleidoscope of activities. Expect music and dance, delicious food, arts and crafts, workshops and more. The full programme for this year’s festival is yet to be announced, but expect it to be a vibrant affair.

Diwali at Marble Hill is an interactive party, with attendees encouraged to get hands-on in their celebration of the Festival of Light. At this year’s event, you’ll be able to join a lantern making session, get a taste for Bhangra dance moves and more. Cap off the festivities with the light parade that takes revellers down to the banks of the Thames for a truly pretty way to round off the day.

Devonshire Square’s Diwali Festival might not span as many hours as some other events in the city, but it packs in some top quality cultural highlights. This year – the sixth edition of the festival here – Academy South Asian Dance UK will showcase a range of Indian folk, classical and contemporary dance, while award-winning artist Miguel Rajaguru will display his take on the traditional visual art of Rangoon. There’ll also be treats for the tastebuds, too, with a range of Indian sweets and special Diwali canapés on offer, all served up with the epic-sounding ‘Odyssey Rose Nectar’ – a velvety rose milk made with pure rose essence. Sounds luxurious and very delicious.

Lalit Kumar, the Executive Chef at the InterContinental London Park Lane, will team up with Masterchef: The Professionals semi-finalist Arbinder Singh Dugal for a very special, one-night-only dinner this Diwali. The meal will take the form of a five-course testing menu with optional wine pairings, and will fuse traditional Indian spices and flavours with modern culinary techniques. On the menu will be dishes including Masala dahi panna cotta, Kashmiri chilli rum of lamb and lamb shoulder, Malai Paneer pie, and desserts like aamras and churn sorbet. You’ll also get to give your compliments to the chef yourself as part of a meet-and-greet.

Harrow Fireworks take Bonfire Night – or the weekend after it, at least – very seriously, with a full day programme of fun to take part in. The first three hours of the event are free and you’ll be able to partake in servings of street food, all the fun of the fair, a market with crafts and other goodies up for sale and a bar. Cough up some cash for the rest, though, and you’ll get the true experience with entertainment and, of course, the fireworks display seeing you through til the end of the night. The whole thing doubles as a Diwali celebration too, so you get two festivals for the price of one.