Launched in 2000, the annual Hornbill Festival of Nagaland has today occupied a signif icant spot in the national tourism calendar, which in turn has also enabled the state of Nagaland to find a prominent place in the global tourism map. In reality, there was no traditional festival among any of the 17 tribal communities of the sixty-year-old hill state. But one must recognize the foresight of the founders of this festival, named after the Indian Hornbill, which is a common bird in Nagaland’s folklore and is often seen in Nagaland’s forests, which has brought this festival to the present status. While different tribal communities of Nagaland have different festivals, the greatest success of the festival is bringing the communities under one umbrella and within a given period of time a package of all these festivals, so that the tourists can see all of them. The modern-day tourist is not just interested in visiting monuments, archaeological sites and wildlife sanctuaries. Heritage and culture, especially of the ethnic communities, is an emerging attraction, and Nagaland has been successful in showcasing the rich and traditional cultural heritage in all its ethnicity, diversity and grandeur through this festival. What is also important to note is that Nagaland, once the most disturbed state of the country, is today a major global tourist attraction, and Hornbill Festival definitely has contributed immensely towards changing the negative image of the state.