Nagaland Travel Guide: Kohima, Hornbill Festival and the Naga Hills

Nagaland became India's sixteenth state on 1 December 1963. The state government lists 17 districts and 17 recognised tribes, with Kohima as the capital at 1,444 m and Dimapur as the commercial hub; Saramati, at 3,840 m, is the highest peak. Most routes start at Dimapur and climb to Kohima, then branch out to villages whose tribes each keep their own festivals.

Kohima

Kohima is the usual base. The Kohima War Cemetery, on Garrison Hill in the middle of the city, is the memorial to those who died in the Battle of Kohima in April 1944. The Nagaland State Museum, founded in 1970, shows Naga tribal material culture in eight galleries. Our Kohima travel guide covers the city, the war sites and the Angami villages around it.

Naga Heritage Village, Kisama

Kisama lies 12 km from Kohima on the national highway. The Kohima district describes the Naga Heritage Village as designed in the form of an ancient Naga village, built to recreate traditional village life, with separate morungs for men and women: the community houses where young people once learned skills and the village talked things over. It is the venue of the Hornbill Festival, and taxis run to it from Kohima.

Khonoma

Khonoma, 20 km west of Kohima, is an Angami village that the Kohima district calls India's first green village. It has terraced paddy fields and the Khonoma Nature Conservation and Tragopan Sanctuary, which protects the endangered Blyth's tragopan. The state tourism department's homestay list names several homestays in the village, so it works as a night away from Kohima as well as a day trip.

Dzükou Valley

Dzükou is a high valley between Nagaland and Manipur, at around 2,450 m and about 30 km south of Kohima by the district's reckoning. Bamboo brush covers the hills, streams run through the meadows and there are natural caves. In summer the valley fills with wildflowers, including the Dzükou lily, which the department says grows only here. It is reached on foot, so go with a local guide and check the trail with the Directorate of Tourism first.

Japfu Peak

Japfu Peak, at 3,048 m, is the second-highest peak in Nagaland, about 15 km south of Kohima. The Kohima district gives November to March as the season, when the weather is clearer and drier. It is the nearest of the high peaks to the capital; hill roads are slow, so start early and allow for a late return.

Dimapur

Dimapur is the gateway: its district says it has the state's only railway station and airport. The district also calls it the ancient capital of the Kachari kingdom, whose rule existed before the 13th century, and the Kachari ruins show carved sandstone pillars and monoliths. It lists a zoological park of 176 hectares opened in 2008, a stone garden and a craft village at Chümoukedima as well. Plan a night here at either end if your flight or train arrives late.

Mokokchung

Mokokchung is the home of the Ao Naga, in northern Nagaland. The district lists the villages of Mopungchuket, Longkhum and Ungma among its tourist places, and the state lists the Ao festival of Moatsu for May. Dimapur's airport is about 212 km away, and day and night buses and shared Sumo cars take roughly six to eight hours. Assam's Jorhat airport is about 112 km from the district headquarters.

Mon and the Konyak villages

Mon, in the far north, borders Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Myanmar, and is Konyak country. The district names Longwa, Shangnyu and Chui among its places of interest, notes wood carving in many villages, and describes Shangnyu and Chui as ethnic villages ruled by their Anghs, or chiefs. The Konyak festival of Aoleang falls in April. The district's own access page, last updated in 2019, gives Jorhat as the nearest airport, about 161 km, with the route running via Sonari in Assam, so confirm current services before you plan around it.

Wokha and the Doyang valley

Wokha is the home of the Lotha Naga, and the Tokhu Emong festival falls in November. Wokha district lists the Amur falcon roosting site near Pangti village in the Doyang valley, which it calls the Amur falcon capital of the world, with the best viewing from mid-October to early November. A nature trail climbs Mount Tiyi, and the district's best months are October to May.

The Hornbill Festival is a ten-day annual tourism event organised by the Government of Nagaland and called the Festival of Festivals. The state tourism department holds it in the first ten days of December and says it was conceived in 2000. The venue is the Naga Heritage Village at Kisama, 12 km from Kohima. The department's programme lists cultural performances by different Naga tribes, indigenous games including Naga wrestling, contests such as Naga King Chilly and pineapple eating, the Hornbill Music Festival with rock contests, a Bamboo Carnival and a Night Carnival, handlooms and local food, a World War II rally, village walks and treks, mountain biking and Dzükou day hikes.

The tourism department's site carries the festival listing and a Ticket to Hornbill page, so check both for the current arrangements. Indian visitors need the Inner Line Permit described below, as for any visit. The department's homestay list names about a dozen homestays at Kigwema, several near the Naga Heritage Village. Book rooms early, and apply for the permit as soon as your dates are fixed. Our festival calendar and what's on this month pages show where Hornbill sits among India's other festivals, and our festival experiences cover the trips built around them.

Nagaland's year is a calendar of tribal festivals. The state lists Sökrönye of the Chakhesang in January, Sekrenyi of the Angami in February, Aoleang of the Konyak in April, Moatsu of the Ao in May, Tuluni of the Sumi and Naknyulüm of the Chang in July, Yemshe of the Pochury in October and Tokhu Emong of the Lotha in November. Handwoven textiles are sold in the markets of Kohima, Dimapur and Mon, and the state tourism site describes Naga kitchens as built on bamboo shoot, axone (fermented soybean), smoked meats and foraged greens.

For the villages, stay in a homestay and walk with a local guide; for village stays elsewhere in India, see our village and tribal tourism page. For the trail to Dzükou and the wider region, see our journal's guide to north-east trekking and its overview of the top places to visit in North East India.

Nagaland is one of the states where visitors from outside need a permit before they enter. Under the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation of 1873, which the Nagaland Government's ILP portal cites, anyone who is not an indigenous inhabitant of Nagaland must obtain an Inner Line Permit. Indian tourists apply online at the state's official portal, ilp.nagaland.gov.in, under its domestic tourist category. A tourist does not need a local guarantor but must give a local contact, and the portal's FAQ says an online tourist application made in working hours may be approved within four hours. Apply well before you travel, and download the permit card from the portal when it is issued.

The portal's fee page lists a validity of 30 days for tourists, while the Commissioner's page says 15 days, so read the validity on your own permit. You can also apply in person at the Nagaland Houses or the Deputy Commissioner's office of the district. The portal also lists notifications on how the permit is implemented, including one for the districts of Chumoukedima and Niuland, so do not count on sorting it out on arrival.

Foreign visitors should check before booking, because official pages differ. The Bureau of Immigration, under the Ministry of Home Affairs, lists the whole of Nagaland among places that need a Restricted/Protected Area Permit, applied for through an Indian mission at least 30 days ahead or, once in India, through the jurisdictional FRRO at least 15 days ahead. The ILP portal lists a foreigner category and says the permit applies to Indians and foreigners alike. The state's general FAQ page says foreign tourists can enter without permits but must register with the Foreigners' Registration Officer or the nearest police station within 24 hours. Ask the FRRO and the ILP helpline which applies to your nationality before you book. Our visa guide covers the rest of the entry paperwork.

IMD's climate summary for Kohima gives an average annual rainfall of 180.5 cm over 121 rainy days. August is the wettest month at 36.6 cm and December the driest at 0.7 cm, and the south-west monsoon brings about 64 per cent of the rain. July and August are the warmest months, with mean daily maxima of about 25.0°C. January is cold, with a mean maximum of 15.5°C and minimum of 8.0°C. Fog occurs from May to October and occasionally from December to April, and thunderstorms in March and April are sometimes accompanied by hail.

The dry months from November to March suit most visits. Match the month to the draw: Amur falcons at Doyang from mid-October to early November, Japfu Peak from November to March, the Hornbill Festival in early December, and Dzükou's wildflowers in summer, which overlaps the rains.

Dimapur is the only airport in Nagaland and has the state's only railway station, on the North East Frontier Railway. Guwahati, in Assam, is well connected to Dimapur and has direct trains to most major cities. From Dimapur, Kohima is 74 km by road; Nagaland State Road Transport buses, night buses and taxis run between the two, and the taxi stand is beside Dimapur railway station. By road from Guwahati to Kohima the state tourism department gives 8 to 9 hours and advises starting and finishing the drive before nightfall. Mokokchung and Mon can also be reached from Assam, and Assam's Jorhat airport is the nearest for both. Our guide to Guwahati covers the usual gateway, and domestic flights in India explains booking the leg in.