Village-wide art exhibition and live demonstrations. Pattachitra, palm leaf engraving, stone carving showcased. Award-winning heritage village opens all workshops.
Why it mattersIndia's first Heritage Craft Village opens every doorway as a gallery
Skip to content
Naksh.iq
ISSUE Nº 47 · MAY 2026
Festival · ODISHA
Raghurajpur Art Festival.
December (around Konark Festival) · Raghurajpur
Going for this? Raghurajpur in December
NakshIQ score
5/10
Go
December transforms this craft village into a living gift shop
Getting there
Elevation
10 m
Nearest airport
Biju Patnaik Intl (BBI) — 55km
Nearest railway
Puri Railway Station — 14km
Live in Raghurajpur
Where to eat
Hotel Padmalaya, Chandanpur (Raghurajpur access road)
Chandanpur (Puri-Konark road, ~2km from Raghurajpur turn-off) · ₹SignatureChuda kadamba with dalma — Chandanpur's signature breakfast
This is a Chandanpur address, explicitly labelled — not inside Raghurajpur itself, but the nearest practical place to eat when visiting the craft village. Come for breakfast: chuda kadamba with dalma is the local speciality and is best in the morning. Pair a Raghurajpur visit with a Chandanpur breakfast stop.
Artist-family home meals, Raghurajpur
Raghurajpur village · ₹SignatureHome-cooked Odia thali — dalma, pakhala, machha besara
There is no walk-in restaurant — a meal must be arranged in advance through an artist family or a homestay, ideally the day before. Pair it with watching pattachitra or palm-leaf work being done. For a quick bite without arrangement, eat in Chandanpur on the access road or back in Puri.
Other festivals in December, elsewhere
ALSO ON NAKSHIQ
Eight more rooms in the magazine.
Guides
Visa, scams, food, packing.
Everything the guidebook won't tell you — written for India in 2026.
Blog
Field notes from the road.
Long-form reads on regions, festivals, and the offbeat circuit.
Road trips
Curated multi-day routes.
Driving itineraries with day-by-day stops, distance, and difficulty.
Collections
Themed reading lists.
Wettest places. Sacred lakes. Solo-female-safe. Curated cuts.
NakshIQ 100
The 100 best destination-months.
India's highest-scoring places, ranked across all 12 months.
The Window
Our weekly newsletter, archived.
One honest spread, every Sunday. The full back catalogue.
Skip list
What we'd skip — and what we'd do instead.
Overhyped places with honest alternatives.
First trip
Planning your first time in India.
Safety, scams, what to wear, food survival, solo female travel.