When should I order Onam hampers?

Four to six weeks before Onam for corporate / bulk orders; two to four weeks for single-family hampers. Onam-week orders may not arrive in time.

Are your Onam hampers vegetarian?

Most are vegetarian by default — Onam is traditionally a vegetarian festival. We do offer non-vegetarian add-ons for households that include them.

Can you customise Onam hampers with corporate branding?

Yes — for orders of 25+ boxes we customise the wrap, add your branded card and price by volume. Write to us via the Contact page with your dates and recipient count.

Do you ship Onam hampers internationally?

Not directly. The standard pattern is to order from abroad to an Indian address. International outbound is on the roadmap.

What's in a standard Onam hamper?

Kozhikode black halwa, Maamoul date cookies, banana chips, Kerala chaya tin, and a handwritten gift note. Composition is published per-SKU on the product pages once the line opens.

Festival · August / September

Onam.

Written by Abdulla K P, Founder.

The Onam food culture

Onam is the harvest festival of Kerala — a ten-day window in August or September that celebrates the mythical reign of King Mahabali. The centrepiece is the Onasadya, a multi-course vegetarian meal served on a banana leaf, but the surrounding food culture is broader: gift hampers exchanged between families, snack boxes sent to colleagues, premium Kerala sweets shipped from Kerala to wherever the diaspora has settled.

Calicut Cravings ships Onam hampers from early August. Our focus is the part of the Onam table that travels well — halwa from Kozhikode, Maamoul, banana-coconut sweets like Unnakaya and Sukhiyan, savoury banana-and-jackfruit chips, and Kerala tea. The Sadya itself is best cooked fresh; the hamper is the gifting layer around it.

If you're sending an Onam hamper from outside Kerala — from Bangalore or Mumbai to family back home, or from Dubai to parents in Kochi — the typical lead time is four to seven days, so plan to ship by mid-August for arrival before the main festival days.

What to order for Onam

Premium Onam hamper — Halwa, Maamoul, Unnakaya, Kerala chaya, handwritten note. The default gift.
Kozhikode black halwa — The single most iconic Calicut sweet. Travels well at room temperature.
Banana and jackfruit chips — Onam-table savouries that ship cleanly and keep at room temperature.
Maamoul box — A premium addition for corporate gifting; longer shelf life.
Corporate Onam orders — Bulk-customised hampers with your branding for 25+ recipients.

Timing

When	What to do
6 weeks before Onam	Hampers open. Corporate gifting enquiries close fastest in this window.
4 weeks before Onam	Sweet spot for shipping abroad-to-India orders.
2 weeks before Onam	Last reliable window for pan-India delivery.
Onam week	Limited stock; book early or expect partial fulfilment.

What's in the hamper

Our Onam hamper combines premium Kerala sweets (Kozhikode halwa, Maamoul), savoury chips, a tin of Kerala chaya and a handwritten Onam Aashamsakal note. Designed to land on a doorstep and feel like a hand-delivered gift.

Common questions — Onam

When should I order Onam hampers?
Four to six weeks before Onam for corporate / bulk orders; two to four weeks for single-family hampers. Onam-week orders may not arrive in time.
Are your Onam hampers vegetarian?
Most are vegetarian by default — Onam is traditionally a vegetarian festival. We do offer non-vegetarian add-ons for households that include them.
Can you customise Onam hampers with corporate branding?
Yes — for orders of 25+ boxes we customise the wrap, add your branded card and price by volume. Write to us via the Contact page with your dates and recipient count.
Do you ship Onam hampers internationally?
Not directly. The standard pattern is to order from abroad to an Indian address. International outbound is on the roadmap.
What's in a standard Onam hamper?
Kozhikode black halwa, Maamoul date cookies, banana chips, Kerala chaya tin, and a handwritten gift note. Composition is published per-SKU on the product pages once the line opens.