Manipur holds some of the most unusual natural and cultural landmarks in India. A lake that floats. A market run only by women. The birthplace of the sport polo. A deer found nowhere else on Earth, walking on islands of matted vegetation.
This guide covers the best places to visit in Manipur alongside the one thing every traveller needs to read before planning anything: the current security situation. Axomor does not recommend destinations without giving you the full picture.
Travel Advisory: Current Status (2026)
The ethnic conflict between the Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities that erupted in May 2023 is ongoing. As of May 2026, the US State Department rates Manipur at Level 4: Do Not Travel, the highest possible designation. The UK FCDO advises against all but essential travel, specifically naming Imphal. Australia and Canada carry similar warnings.
Key facts: roughly 258 people killed, 60,000+ displaced, and fresh violence documented in early 2025. Annual tourist arrivals fell from 179,000 before the conflict to around 17,000 in 2024-25, a collapse of about 90%. A new state government took office in February 2026, but the conflict itself remains unresolved.
The geographic reality: Manipur is split in practice between the Imphal Valley (Meitei-dominated, where the airport, capital, and most tourist attractions sit) and the hill districts (Kuki-Zo and tribal communities). Buffer zones with police outposts separate them. Movement between the two is dangerous and restricted.
What remains operational in the valley: Imphal Airport functions normally. Kangla Fort and Ima Keithel market operate day-to-day. The Sangai Festival ran in November 2025. The Shirui Lily Festival resumed in May 2025 after a two-year gap, with 2,000+ security personnel deployed along the Imphal-Ukhrul highway.
What anyone planning to visit must do: Check your government’s current travel advisory before booking anything. Ground conditions change, sometimes quickly. Contact a local operator or Imphal hotel directly for real-time status before travel.
This guide documents Manipur’s exceptional places honestly, for travellers who want to understand what is there and plan a future visit with eyes open.
Inner Line Permit (ILP)
Every Indian national who is not a Manipur resident needs an Inner Line Permit to enter the state. Apply online at manipurilponline.mn.gov.in. Tourist ILP is issued for 15 days, extendable to 30. Print the permit and carry it; checks happen at state border entry points including Mao (from Nagaland) and Jiribam (from Assam).
Foreign nationals do not need an ILP but must register with the Foreigners Registration Office (FRO) or CID Office in Imphal. Hotels in Imphal assist with this. There is a registration point at Imphal Airport on arrival.
The Best Places to Visit in Manipur
Loktak Lake and Keibul Lamjao National Park
Loktak Lake is 48 km from Imphal, about 1.5 hours by road, in the Bishnupur district of the valley. It is the largest freshwater lake in Northeast India, and what makes it unlike any other lake in India are the phumdis: thick floating mats of soil, vegetation, and organic matter that drift slowly across the surface. Some are large enough to build fishing huts on. Fishermen live on them seasonally.
Keibul Lamjao National Park occupies 40 km² within the lake and is the only floating national park in the world. The park is the last remaining habitat of the sangai, the Manipur brow-antlered deer (Rucervus eldii eldii), found nowhere else on Earth. The deer have adapted to walk on phumdi mats. Their gait is unusual: they pick their way across floating ground that shifts slightly with each step. Watching them move across the lake in morning mist is unlike any wildlife encounter in India.
Population figures are disputed: the park officially cites around 260 deer, a Wildlife Institute of India survey found 88-92, and a 2025 head count found 204. Whatever the precise number, this is a single isolated population with no backup habitat.
Boating on Loktak: Available 6 AM-5 PM year-round. Canoe rides through the phumdi channels: Rs 100-300. Manipur Tourism launched an electric eco-boat fleet in 2025 to reduce engine pollution on the lake. Sendra Island, 48 km from Imphal on the lake, has a Manipur Tourism guesthouse with panoramic views and a cafeteria.
- Best viewing hours at Keibul Lamjao: 6-10 AM and 3:30-6 PM when deer feed near the shore
- Access: By boat from the lake edge; Manipur Tourism organises day tours from Imphal
- Also nearby: INA Museum at Moirang (where the Indian National Army set up a provisional government in 1944)
Kangla Fort, Imphal
Kangla Fort is a 237-acre citadel on the Imphal River that served as the royal seat of the Meitei kings from around 33 CE until the British captured it in 1891. The Indian Army held it for over a century before returning it to Manipur in 2004. What stands today is a combination of ruins, reconstructed structures, and active temple.
Inside the fort: the Kangla Palace ruins, Pakhangba Temple (the royal family’s tutelary deity), a historic moat, and the Kangjeibung polo ground. That polo ground is the oldest in the world, in continuous use since approximately the 15th century BC.
Modern polo descends from Manipur. The game, called Sagol Kangei (sagol = pony, kangei = game of sticks), dates to around 3100 BC in Manipur. British officers encountered it here and established India’s first polo club at Silchar in 1859, then introduced the sport to England. The Guinness Book of Records (1991) officially credits Manipur as polo’s birthplace. Most travel writing about Imphal misses this entirely.
- Hours: 9 AM-5 PM, closed Mondays
- Entry: Free or nominal fee (verify on arrival)
- Location: Central Imphal, riverside
Ima Keithel (Women’s Market), Imphal
Ima Keithel, “Mother’s Market,” in central Imphal is the only market in Asia run exclusively by women. Over 3,000 women vendors sell vegetables, fish, handloom textiles, traditional garments, and spices. The tradition is over 100 years old and the market continues to operate normally.
The goods are less the point than the atmosphere: an enormous market institution where the vendors are organized, efficient, and in complete control. The stalls selling ngari (fermented fish, months old, earthen-pot-aged) sit at the centre of the market, just as ngari sits at the centre of Meitei cooking.
Ukhrul and Shirui Lily Peak
Ukhrul is 83 km east of Imphal at 1,520m, in the Tangkhul Naga hills. The Shirui Kashung Peak above the town (approximately 2,800m) is the only place on Earth where the Shirui lily (Lilium mackliniae) grows wild. It blooms April-May. Pale pink-white bell flowers in clusters, appearing across the upper slopes for a few weeks each year.
The Shirui Lily Festival resumed in May 2025 after a two-year break caused by the ethnic conflict. The 2025 festival ran May 20-24 with the state deploying 2,000+ security personnel along the Imphal-Ukhrul highway and organizing convoy transport for those uncertain about independent travel. A positive signal after two years.
Ukhrul is Tangkhul Naga territory, distinct from the main Meitei-Kuki conflict axis. However, the approach road from Imphal passes through sensitive areas. If you plan to visit: coordinate with the district administration or a local operator well in advance, verify road conditions in real time, and travel during the festival period when the security presence is strongest. The trek to Shirui Kashung Peak from Shirui village is roughly 8-10 km round trip.
- Best time to visit Ukhrul: April-May for the lily bloom; the festival window (usually mid-to-late May) for organized access
- 2026 Shirui Lily Festival dates: Not yet announced as of May 2026
Dzuko Valley
Dzuko Valley is listed as a Manipur attraction but is accessed more practically from Nagaland. The standard trekking routes begin at Jakhama or Viswema villages near Kohima. A Manipur-side approach does exist from Mount Tempu in Senapati district, but it is less developed, lacks amenities, and the hill district access situation makes the Nagaland approach the more practical option right now. If Dzuko Valley is your primary goal, base yourself in Kohima.
Best Time to Visit Manipur
| Season | Months | Conditions |
|---|---|---|
| Autumn | Oct-Nov | Clear, cool; Sangai Festival (Nov 21-30); wildlife season at Loktak |
| Winter | Dec-Feb | 4-15°C, dry, excellent for lake and fort visits |
| Spring | Mar-May | Yaoshang festival (March); Shirui lily blooms (April-May) |
| Monsoon | Jun-Sep | Heavy rain; hill roads become hazardous; not recommended |
November is the best single month: the Sangai Festival (November 21-30) is Manipur’s biggest cultural event, covering dance, traditional sports, crafts, indigenous games, and music. The 2025 festival ran despite the conflict.
March brings Yaoshang, Manipur’s Holi equivalent. It runs 5 days from the full moon of Phalguna. The distinctive event is Thabal Chongba: a moonlit group dance where young men and women form large circles, hold hands, and dance together through the night. It is specific to Manipur and not like Holi anywhere else.
Ras Lila performances happen on autumn full moons (three times between August and November) and at spring. This all-night classical dance-drama depicting Radha-Krishna stories is performed in temple courtyards, with the audience seated on straw mats. One of India’s eight classical dance forms, it is most actively practiced in Manipur.
Getting There
Imphal’s Bir Tikendrajit International Airport (IMF) is the only practical entry point for tourists right now. The airport functions normally.
- Guwahati: Most frequent route, 30+ weekly flights
- Delhi: Daily; Air India Express added a new daily service from October 2025
- Kolkata: Multiple daily flights
- New from January 2026: Routes from Aizawl, Dimapur, and Silchar added
Overland travel via NH 2 (through Mao from Nagaland) is technically possible but requires real-time security assessment. Independent road travel from outside Manipur is not recommended in current conditions.
Manipur’s Food
The cuisine is built on two ingredients: ngari (fermented fish, aged months in earthen pots) and fresh valley vegetables. Ngari functions like anchovy paste or fish sauce in depth of flavour. It is in most dishes. Do not avoid it.
Eromba: Boiled vegetables (mustard leaves, potatoes, bamboo shoots) mashed with dried red chilies, umorok (king chili / Bhut jolokia), and ngari. Deep umami with real heat.
Singju: A fresh salad of raw green papaya, lotus stem, cabbage, and herbs dressed with ngari, roasted chickpeas, and spices. Crunchy, tangy, and spicy at once.
Chak-hao kheer: Black rice pudding, purple from the pigment in the grain, nutty-flavored. Manipur’s Chak-hao (black rice) is a genuinely distinct variety.
Plan Your Manipur Trip
When conditions improve, Manipur fits naturally into a Northeast India circuit. From Imphal, the main Axomor-catalogued Manipur destinations include Loktak Lake and the Keibul Lamjao park, Kangla Fort, Ima Keithel, and Ukhrul for the lily season.
For northeast India states with fewer current access complications, see our Best Places to Visit in Assam and Best Places to Visit in Arunachal Pradesh guides. Explore all Manipur destinations on Axomor.
Manipur has a floating national park, the world’s only all-women market of its size, the birthplace of polo, and a deer species with no other habitat on Earth. These are not minor curiosities. When the security situation stabilizes, this state will reward visitors in ways that most of Northeast India cannot. Travel advisories, and ground conditions, should be checked before any trip is booked.
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