Kumbh Mela Camp Checklist: What to Pack for a Tent Stay

Staying in one of the Kumbh Mela camps is not like checking into a hotel: you are living in a tent city of lakhs of pilgrims, walking to the river before dawn, and spending long days outdoors. Packing right makes the difference. This checklist is written for Kumbh Mela camps at the Haridwar Kumbh 2027 (14 January – 20 April) and works for the Nashik Simhastha too, with a note for Ujjain's summer at the end.

What the camp already gives you

Don't carry what you won't need. In our camps every tent has a bed with bedding, lights and charging points, and an attached bathroom with hot water. Sattvic vegetarian meals and drinking water are provided, and the camp has 24-hour security. So leave the sleeping bag and the camping stove at home.

Clothes

• Warm layers: Haridwar nights in January–February drop to around 5°C. Thermals, a sweater, a jacket, a woollen cap and socks for everyone.
• Snan clothes: a change of clothes for after the bath, a light towel, and a bag for wet clothes.
• Comfortable walking shoes plus slippers or floaters for the ghat and the bathroom.
• A shawl or stole — useful for temples, cold mornings and sitting at satsang.

For snan day

• A small waterproof pouch for your phone, cash and ID.
• A torch or headlamp — you will walk to the ghat before sunrise.
• A printed card with your camp's name, the desk number and a family member's number, in every pocket.
• A little cash in small notes; networks slow down badly in big crowds, so don't rely on UPI alone.
• A water bottle and a few dry snacks.

Documents

• Government photo ID for every adult (the camp and police checks may ask for it).
• Your booking confirmation and the camp's location pin, saved offline.
• Copies of prescriptions for any medicines.

Health kit

• All regular medicines for the full trip, plus a few extra days.
• Basics: paracetamol, ORS, an antacid, band-aids, a cold and cough remedy.
• Moisturiser and lip balm — winter air by the river is dry.
• Masks for the dusty crowds on snan days.

Puja items

If you plan a puja or karmkand, carry what your family tradition needs — or ask the desk, which can arrange a Haridwar pandit and the samagri. Our guide to puja and karmkand at the Kumbh explains what to expect.

What to leave behind

• Expensive jewellery and anything you would hate to lose in a crowd.
• Large suitcases — camp paths are walked, so a soft bag or a backpack is easier.
• Plastic bags; the mela area restricts them.

Ujjain and summer Kumbhs

The Ujjain Simhastha runs from 27 March to 27 May 2028, in heat. Swap the woollens for light cotton clothes, a cap, sunglasses and sunscreen, carry more water and ORS, and plan snans in the early morning. Our Ujjain camp is set up for summer.

Ready to book?

Pick your camp on our Kumbh Mela camps page — Haridwar, Rishikesh, Nashik or Ujjain — and send your dates to the Pulp Hotels Kumbh desk. You get the rate for your dates, and you pay at the camp.

Plan your stay: see every camp, hotel, ashram and homestay on our Kumbh Mela Haridwar stays page (and all Kumbh Mela camps), or WhatsApp the Pulp Hotels Kumbh desk on +91 93891 86101.