Aug / Sep · 10 days
Ganesh Chaturthi
The city's defining festival. Idols are carried through the streets and immersed at Girgaon Chowpatty and Juhu on the final day. Expect closed roads and a million people.
Oct / Nov
Diwali
Lamps on every balcony, the sweets shops at full stretch, and the clearest, coolest air of the year in the days after.
February
Kala Ghoda Arts Festival
Nine days of installations, street theatre and food across the museum quarter, all of it free.
Jun–Sep
The monsoon
About 2,200 mm falls, most of it in these four months. The city is green, the sea is violent, and Malabar Hill is at its best in the rain.
Dec–Feb
The season
Twenty to thirty degrees, low humidity, cricket at the Wankhede and every hotel at its highest rate. Book early.