Kumbh 2027: NTKMA Expects at Least 5 Lakh Foreign Visitors, Plans Airport Help Desks

The 2027 Simhastha is expected to draw a large number of visitors from abroad, and the Kumbh authority is planning for them at the airports.

At least 5 lakh foreign visitors

The Nashik-Trimbakeshwar Kumbh Mela Authority (NTKMA) expects at least 5 lakh foreign visitors, the Hindustan Times reported on 4 October 2026. NTKMA plans help desks at airports in Nashik, Mumbai, Delhi and other cities. It will work with the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and with embassies.

Collector Ayush Prasad, who is also NTKMA vice-chairman, said there will be "aggressive branding" of the mela.

There will be no special lodging for foreigners. They can stay in hotels or in private tent cities, according to the same report.

What has not been published yet: the exact airports, the dates the help desks will open, their timings and what services they will offer. We will add these when NTKMA announces them.

How many people overall? Three estimates, three scopes

You will see very different crowd numbers in the news. They are not wrong so much as they count different things. Here they are, each with its exact scope:

• NTKMA plan: 12 crore pilgrims in total over the mela. On a single Amrit Snan day, 1.5 crore in Nashik and 0.75 crore in Trimbak.
• Commissioner Shekhar Singh (HT, 4 October 2026): "8 crore in Nashik and 4 crore in Trimbakeshwar during the peak period".
• Indian Railways (PIB, July 2025): "over 3 crore".

These figures cover different places and time periods, so they should not be added up or compared directly. The 5 lakh foreign visitors are a separate estimate on top of this picture.

Flying in: Nashik airport

Nashik's airport is at Ozar (Janori). A new integrated terminal is due by 31 March 2027, according to a review by Singh reported by the Times of India on 18 August 2026. It will have a 17,800 sq m terminal building, aerobridges and a larger apron. Capacity will rise from about 300 to about 1,000 passengers an hour. DGCA and BCAS approvals are in place.

Today, Nashik has flights to Delhi, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad and Bengaluru, with night operations. There are no international flights to Nashik on this list, so most overseas visitors will first land at a bigger airport, such as Mumbai or Delhi, where help desks are planned.

What this means for visitors

• If you are coming from abroad, plan your onward travel from Mumbai or Delhi to Nashik. Our how to reach page covers road, rail and air.
• Hotel beds in Nashik are limited, so look at hotels and tent cities early. See our accommodation page.
• No official Kumbh app or portal is live yet. NTKMA has approved an app for tent-city booking and an official web portal (Times of India, 3 July 2026), but neither has launched as far as we could find. Be careful with sites that claim to be official.
• The busiest days are the Amrit Snans: 2 August, 31 August, and 11 (Nashik) and 12 (Trimbakeshwar) September 2027. Check our dates page and our guide before you book flights.

This site is an independent guide and is not run by NTKMA or any government office.