I was in Auroville recently and it was so fun to check out the quirky cafes and restaurants. There are so many workshops too. I’d like to go back but I’m curious about the weather and events though, so was wondering, what is the best time to visit?
January and February are the best months to visit Auroville because the temperatures won’t getter hotter than the mid-80°F (~28°C) and there is very little rainfall. March and April are good too, although the temperatures rise to +90°F (+30°C).
If you don’t mind warm weather or a bit of rain, there are months throughout the year that could work for you. I visited in August and had a great time.
Workshops run throughout the year, so if there’s one you’d like to take it could be worth visiting during the off-season. The benefit of visiting during the off-season is that you will find better prices and there are fewer crowds.
Let’s go through the weather in Auroville month-by-month, then take a look at the popular events you may be interested in…
Weather in Auroville
| Temp [Min] | Temp [Avg] | Temp [Max] | Rainfall (mm) | |
| January 👍👍 | 69 °F (20 °C) | 78 °F (24 °C) | 83 °F (28 °C) | 29 |
| February 👍👍 | 69 °F (21 °C) | 77 °F (25 °C) | 85 °F (30 °C) | 9 |
| March 👍 | 73 °F (23 °C) | 81 °F (27 °C) | 90 °F (32 °C) | 8 |
| April 👍 | 78 °F (26 °C) | 85 °F (30 °C) | 92 °F (34 °C) | 18 |
| May | 80 °F (27 °C) | 89 °F (32 °C) | 98 °F (36 °C) | 48 |
| June | 80 °F (27 °C) | 89 °F (32 °C) | 98 °F (37 °C) | 45 |
| July | 79 °F (26 °C) | 87 °F (31 °C) | 95 °F (31 °C) | 81 |
| August | 77 °F (25 °C) | 86 °F (30 °C) | 94 °F (35 °C) | 150 |
| September | 77 °F (25 °C) | 85 °F (29 °C) | 93 °F (34 °C) | 115 |
| October 👎👎 | 75 °F (24 °C) | 82 °F (28 °C) | 89 °F (32 °C) | 230 |
| November 👎👎 | 72 °F (22 °C) | 78 °F (26 °C) | 84 °F (29 °C) | 274 |
| December | 70 °F (21 °C) | 76 °F (24 °C) | 82 °F (28 °C) | 134 |
The winter in South India is perfect for traveling. It’s cool at night and hot, but not too hot during the day. January and February are great to visit Auroville.
March and April are getting warmer. In March it will be in the higher than 90°F (32°C) most days, however, if you don’t mind warm weather it won’t be too bad. In March, the tourists will start to leave town as well, so it will be less crowded.
FUN FACT: Auroville reforested the area so it is a few degrees cooler than some of the surrounding villages that have less shade.
May through July is the hottest time of year. I’d avoid Auroville during this time of year, and head to North India or inside with some air-conditioning to get some work done.
I live just a few hours away from Auroville and it was regularly over 105°F (40°C). Auroville is a bit cooler, but it’s still going to be difficult to enjoy yourself outside even in the morning or evening.
August and September the temperatures start to cool down and there is intermittent rain. I went to Auroville in August and had a great time. It did rain some days, but it was mostly at night. It was hot during the day, so I would explore before 10 am, then retire to the air-conditioning.
Some places in Auroville won’t have air-conditioning so make sure you look for a hotel or guesthouse that does. I found a place with a swimming pool as well, so I could enjoy more of the sunshine without baking.
October and November are the monsoon season. The rains come later on this side of India. In most of India, the monsoon will finish in August or September. But in the south and west India there will be a lot of rain during this period, so it’s better to visit Auroville another time.
December has mild temperatures and the rains lessen. You could visit in December, although there will be some rains. If you want to get here before most of the tourists, it would be a good time to arrive and secure long-term accommodation or go to a workshop.
Places To Visit in Auroville
Viewing the Matrimandir
You’d want to view the crowning architectural achievement of Auroville when it’s a nice sunny day (not too hot or rainy!).
January through April would be best to view the golden dome. I visited in August and it was hot but worth it. I went as early as I could (9 AM). It only took me an hour to walk to it, take some photos and walk back.
To view the Matrimandir: Park your car (truck, scooter, rickshaw, bicycle, elephant 😉 in the Visitor Parking Lot, then walk to the Visitor Centre.
At the Visitor Centre, get a free pass to view the Matrimandir, you can’t miss the signs pointing the way for you. From there you will walk 10 to 12 minutes on a mostly shady path. You will come to a large banyan tree with benches.
There are also signposts describing the 12 “petals” of the Matrimandir, or meditation rooms within the building. Each has an aspirational name like Perseverance and a symbolic flower like the Marigold.
You can also take a short bus ride from the Visitors Centre which leaves regularly.
Can you go inside the Matrimandir? Yes. You need to schedule a viewing at the Visitors Centre. It may take as many as 1 to 3 days, depending on how many are viewing it before you.
To geta round this process, you can view the Matrimandir without waiting as a guest of a resident of Auroville.
Visitor Centre
The Visitor Centre is the heart of Auroville for the tourist. Many of the buildings are indoors so they can keep the rain off, yet there is NOT air-conditioning in most of them, so it does get hot.
The restaurants and cafes are open-air-style as well, although they are well shaded by the beautiful surrounding trees.
- Information Services: You can find information about the town and its history. There’s a cool video and a museum-like area with paintings and inspirational quotes. There’s a desk at the far end to get a pass to view the Matrimandir.
- Guest Services: Above the Solar Kitchen you can find help for general questions and how you can get the most from your stay. Ask about scheduling a visit to the Matrimandir inner chamber.
- Guest Accommodation Service: Near the desk where you get your pass to view the Matrimandir, you will find signs for Guest Accommodation Service. You can find some people to help you book a guesthouse.
- Solar Kitchen: If it’s after 1 PM (or you’ve made advance booking), you can have a simple lunch, Auroville-style. The Solar Kitchen is the most popular lunchtime spot for the residents to eat. The food is also cooked by the Solar Bowl on top of the building, which is a large solar concentrator using 11,000 bathroom mirrors and steam power to cook your meal.
There are other cafes and you can learn about some of the sustainable practices in Auroville.
Town Hall
The Town Hall is a super modern building, like many in Auroville. There’s not a ton to see for tourists, however, you can find one important service if you’re staying in Auroville for a while…
Financial Services: You can get an AuroCard, which will help you buy stuff at the Solar Kitchen and other places in Auroville. It’s essentially a gift-card you add money to, and can spend as you want. Officially no places in Auroville accept cash, yet in practice, cash is more often accepted than not.
The Media Centre is next door and I’m a fan of this building because of the 154-square meter auditorium to watch films, as well as the departments dedicated to writing for the web 🙂
Cafes and Restaurants near Auroville
January through April is the best time to visit most of the cafes and restaurants because many of them have big patios or are open-air style. I’ve included which places have air-conditioning below if you’re planning a visit during the hot months.
You do want to try the foods and coffee here too! There are people from so many nations that have moved here and it’s cool that many of them brought along their delicious cuisine.
Here are some of the most popular restaurants at Auroville:
- Marc’s Cafe: They roast their own gourmet coffee. They’re cappuccinos and espresso and Americanos are better than most hipster-style places in the US. They also serve breakfast and lunch. Has A/C in the inner room. Also has spacious outdoor seating where most people sit.
- Bread & Chocolate: They are one of the fancy places near Auroville with delicious chocolate drinks. Has A/C.
- Sakura Sushi: I love me some sushi and this place is run by some French people, but the sushi is delicious. Has A/C.
- Auroville Bakery: They have pastries and croissants. They also serve espresso drinks, breakfast, and lunch. Has A/C.
- Tanto Pizzeria: You can get wood-fired pizzas here on an oven out in the open. You can also get weird toppings like SQUID PIZZA. No A/C.
- Dharma Swasti: Healthy vegan and vegetarian food. No A/C.
- Naturellement Garden Cafe: Delicious healthy vegetarian food. No A/C.
- Well Cafe: Mediterranean food in the Visitor Centre. No A/C.
- Right Path Cafe: Indian food in the Visitor Centre. Indoor and outdoor seating. No A/C
- 3 Ways Restaurant: Chinese and Indian food. No A/C.
- Brothers’ Pizzeria: Delicious pizza. No A/C.
- Goyo Korean Silent Restaurant: Book in advance for a silent meal. No A/C
- Greek Cafe and Restaurant: No A/C
- The Secret Garden Restaurant: No A/C
- Mother’s Grace Restaurant: Healthy delicious food and juice bar. No A/C
Many of the restaurants are simple places without air-conditioning though, especially if you’re eating at small cafes within Auroville’s township limits.
During most of January, February, March and even April (although it’s starting to get hot then), the atmosphere is wonderful with birds chirping and the sun shining…
Just wear mosquito spray 😈
How to Find Events at Auroville
Auroville isn’t like Disney Land, where you will have a huge list of tourist attractions.
The joy of Auroville is interacting with the community, and one of the best ways to do this (aside from joining, haha) is to go to a local event.
The events in Auroville changed based on when you arrive, however you can count on some regular events:
- Weekly film showings
- Film club
- Yoga classes
- Personal development classes
- Healing classes
- Lectures
- Theatre
- Music
- Dance
- Sustainable practices
Some examples as I’m writing this (which are sure to change, but will give you an idea what you might see):
- Auroville Discovery Visit: This is perfect for tourists wanting to learn more.
- Lyengar Yoga
- Qi Gong
- Hatha Yoga
- Morning Yoga
- Ashtanga Yoga
- Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine
- Tea Ceremony
- Sound Therapy
- Integral Psychologists: Walk-in appointments
- Shiatsu
- Intuitive touch healing
- Somatics
- Chinese Massage for infants and small children
- Vedic Astrology
- Hypnosis
- Bach Flower Remedies
- Reiki
- Photograph Exhibition: Sri Aurobindo – A Life Sketch
- Scarf Upcycling
- Discover your potential and inborn talents
- Mantra Chanting
- Italian language class for beginners
- Hindu 10 day intensive course
- Thai foot reflexology
I love to learn new things, so seeing all these options is very enticing.
All these events were scheduled for the morning and afternoon for today as I’m writing this. It is also the off-season in Auroville when many residents head north to avoid the hot weather. So you can imagine that you’ll have plenty of options for things to do if you come during the peak season.
When I first visited Auroville, I didn’t know where to find events, but this website is the best place to check on the current listings.
You can also find local events on bulletin boards at places like Green’s Guesthouse, Marc’s Coffee, and Sakura Sushi, among others.
An even better way is to make friends with the locals since some won’t be listed online, and instead will just be more informal gatherings.
How to Find Workshops at Auroville
If you want something more intensive than just a one-time event, then you could try going to one of the many workshops.
One of the principles of Auroville is that education never ends…
1) Auroville belongs to nobody in particular. Auroville belongs to humanity as a whole. But, to live in Auroville, one must be a willing servitor of the divine consciousness.
The Auroville Charter
2) Auroville will be the place of an unending education, of constant progress, and a youth that never ages.
3) Auroville wants to be the bridge between the past and the future. Taking advantage of all discoveries from without and from within, Auroville will boldly spring towards future realisations.
4) Auroville will be a site of material and spiritual researches for a living embodiment of an actual human unity.
You can see that principle in effect with the number of workshops that are offered as well.
When I was traveling in Auroville in August, I have been watching Youtube videos about how to build a home with earthbags. Haha, yeah it’s sort of a niche interest, but you can build a hurricane-proof home for less than $10,000 USD, or even less if you just want one room.
Anyways, while I was researching earthbag homes, I noticed that there was an earthbag home building workshop going on in Auroville right at that time! Probably one of the only ones in the world, according to my research.
My point is that there are a wide range of workshops in Auroville, especially if you are interested in the general themes of the town:
- Sustainable practices
- Gardening
- Farming
- Cooking healthy food
- Building
You can check this website for workshops offered by Auroville at this time.
Here are some examples of workshops you might find:
- Permaculture
- Natural Soap Making
- Arches, Vaults & Domes Architecture Theory
- Cooking with local foods
- Bamboo furniture building
- Advanced bamboo building
- Masonry with Compressed Stabilised Earth Blocks (CSEB)
- Intro to working with earth and bamboo
- Handmade paper
- Sustainability
- Wind generator design
- Auroville’s architecture
- Sustainable habitats
However, this list is NOT an extensive list of the workshops in Auroville. For example, with the earthbag home building workshop, it was NOT listed on Auroville’s official page.
I just googled “earthbag workshop Auroville.”
Therefore if there’s something you’re interested in that you think might be offered in Auroville, then you could try that approach as well.
Annual Events at Auroville
Another factor to consider when planning the best time to visit Auroville are the annual events that the locals celebrate. Here are some of the events I learned about, but I’m sure if you spent time in the community you’d learn many more…
Sunrise gatherings
The traditional way that residents of Auroville celebrate holidays with a sunrise gathering and bonfire outside the Matrimandir. There will be a beautiful colored flower arrangement, candles and many people praying or meditating. Often there is silence as the sun rises. Other times there are times to make small talk and meet the residents and visitors.
The important dates in Auroville are…
New Year’s
There is no ball dropping and champagne, haha, but the residents have had a sunrise gathering in the past to celebrate the new year.
Date: December 31
Auroville Film Festival
I’m a film nerd (the term film “buff” doesn’t suit me, because I rarely work out 😉
Aurofilm is the department of Auroville that’s devoted to film, and they’re popular. They have weekly film showings and workshops. They also have a popular film festival in January.
You can submit a film based on their annual theme. In 2019, it was Human Unity. You can find films made by students, residents, or guests of Auroville. There are many made about Auroville as well.
Date: January 7 – 12 (dates vary, was in December in the past)
Pongal
This is one of the most celebrated Tamil festivals. The people are showing gratitude for the end of the harvest with four days of music, parades, prayers, and making mandalas outside their door. They also eat delicious foods, especially Pongal which is a common rice breakfast dish. It’s like Thanksgiving here though so there are many feasts.
Since most of Auroville is made up of Indians and the surrounding villages, you find a Pongal Bazaar and Pongal Festival. The locals even have a cow race, where they decorate their horns and run through the streets with them.
Dates: January 15 – 18 (dates vary)
The Mother’s Birthday
Mirra Alfassa was Sri Aurobindo’s spiritual partner, and the founder of Auroville.
There is always a sunrise gathering to celebrate her birthday and the residents are very fond of her, so it is one of the most special days of the year. It’s not on the level of Christmas, but it’s getting there 😉
Date: February 21
Auroville’s Birthday
Another day the locals always celebrate with a public darshan is the founding of their beloved town. There’s often a “birthday week” of reverence as well. The tourists and visitors flock to the city, the locals take some time off as schools close and people work less.
There is always a sunrise gathering, a bonfire, and meditation time. In 2015, they celebrated the 50th birthday of Auroville and the community is still going strong.
You can find more events during this time, so if you want to celebrate and participate in Auroville when it’s at its most active, come at this time.
Date: February 28
Tamil New Year
Tamil is the local language and culture where Auroville sits. Tamil is one of the most widely spoken languages in India, and they have their own calendar.
The new year marks the first month in the Tamil calendar called Chithirai. In Auroville, there are performances and traditional food and music. The Youth Centre is one of the main places where the Auroville residents celebrate.
Date: April 14 (date varies)
Sri Aurobindo’s Birthday
The man who started it all was Sri Aurobindo. He was a political activist in his early life, and after being thrown in prison for suspicious events surrounding a bombing, he had a spiritual experience.
When he was released, he moved to Pondicherry and lived in seclusion for 4 years, while he focused on spirituality and yoga.
In 1914, he started to write and this continued throughout the rest of his life. He was one of the only teachers writing in English at the time, and over many years he started to draw followers.
Fun fact: One follower was Sri Swami Satchidanandaji Maharaj. He’s known in the US for spreading Integral Yoga. He started in Pondicherry with Sri Aurobindo though.
In 1920, Sri Aurobindo met The Mother. Then in 1926, he retired to seclusion (lucky guy, that’s my dream 😉 and left the running of the community to her.
Today, his birthday is celebrated with a sunrise gathering in Auroville and meditation. It’s also celebrated in Pondicherry at the ashram which bears his name and where his body rests in a tomb.
Date: August 15 (the same day as India’s Independence Day)
Diwali: The Festival of Lights
Diwali is a popular celebration throughout much of India and Auroville is similar. You can find the roads lined with candles and extravagant flower arrangements on the ground and covered candles. String lights are draped from trees and homes.
There is often a celebration dinner at the Solar Kitchen that is free to attend. You can watch performances and fireworks.
Dates: October 27 (dates vary)
Christmas
Considering that many of the residents of Auroville are from around the world and are Christian, there are some celebrations.***
***Although Auroville has no official religion.
The Unity Pavilion has had some dancing for kids and music for the kids and residents.
Date: December 25
Related Questions:
What are the Best Places To Stay in Auroville?
- Green’s Guesthouse: Simple room with stable wifi and air conditioning. Nice owner and manager. Good restaurant next door with free breakfast. Right by Visitors Parking Lot. $10 – $15 per night per person.
- Tharamai Resort: Violin shaped swimming pool and power backup. Wifi and food is just okay. Out in nature. ~$10 per night on Oyo.
- Isai Ambalam Guesthouse and the Annex: Very nice house with a garden and porch in Silence Forest. Nice light!
- Dharmakanni Tropical Huts: Live in a cabana for $28 per night.
- Olive De Villa: Free wifi and breakfast. Swimming pool. Less than $30 per night per person.
- Grand Serenaa Hotel and Resorts: Free wifi and breakfast. ~$30 per night
- Sharanya Holiday Villa
Check Booking.com and Oyo for hotels and resorts.
Check Auroville’s guesthouse website to stay in the township, or in the Visitor Centre at Guest Accommodation Services.
What are the Places to Visit in Pondicherry?
- Sri Aurobindo’s Ashram
- Promenade Beach
- Gandhi Statue: Third largest in the world
- French War Memorial
- Pondicherry Museum: See ancient stone and bronze sculptures from the area
- Gourbert Market: Shop for fruits and foods
- French Quarter: Check out the French homes in White Town
- French foods: Cafes like Crepe in Touch have delicious crepes with French cheeses and coffee.
- Paradise Island Beach: The cleanest beach near Pondicherry, beautiful for a swim.
- Serenity Beach: Learn to surf and you can swim here.
What are the Auroville Beach Timings?
It’s open from sunrise to sunset. Auroville Beach or Auro beach is less than 5 miles from Auroville.
Go in the morning for the sunrise, you can also watch local fisherman go out or see others taking walks.
In August, there were NO SWIMMING signs. It’s also not the cleanest beach.
I did see local kids playing cricket though and it’s nice for photos of the water.
What is the Best Time to Visit Pondicherry?
January. The temperature is warm during the day and cool at night, there is not much rain. Plus there are popular festivals like Pongal, the International Yoga Festival, and the Pondicherry Heritage Festival. December, February, March, April, August and September might also work. Avoid May through July during the summer, and October and November when monsoon season hits.
What is the Best Time to Visit Chennai?
January. December is the most popular time to visit Chennai, but January has similar weather and little rain. Plus, there are cool festivals like Pongal going on. December through February is probably good for most people. August and September could work if you want to avoid the crowds, get better prices and don’t mind a little heat or rain. You can explore in the mornings and evenings.