Celebrate Bali Like a Local: 10 Must-See Festivals and Events
Where to Find the Best Balinese Festivities?
The Bali festivals and events calendar includes some of the most colorful local celebrations and festivals in Bali. Most observances follow the Balinese calendar system called pawukon, which rotates every 210 days. Besides governing the daily chores and elaborate rites of passage that a Balinese goes through throughout their lives, the calendar system also charts major temple anniversaries.
The Saka New Year uses another different lunar calendar system and is a turn of the year that’s celebrated in total silence. The whole island of Bali literally shuts down from dusk to dawn. Cultural events can be a big part of your vacation experience. Check out our Bali events calendar below to see if any matches your plans.
1. Saka New Year - Nyepi day of silence
Bali’s day of silence and renewal
Good for: Photo, Budget
Nyepi marks Bali’s lunar new year based on the Saka calendar. It usually comes around in March. It’s ultimately the quietest day in Bali. The Melasti processions take place around three days prior to Saka New Year when pilgrims take heirlooms in long walks from temples towards the coastlines for purification rituals.
Saka New Year Eve is loud and festive. In the evening, fire torches and firecrackers are lit to rid the land of malevolent forces and grotesque ogoh-ogoh papier-mâché effigies are paraded throughout the streets. From 6am the following morning, the new year is celebrated in total silence and seclusion. There’s no activity, no traffic, no amusement, and no fires or lights may be lit. Read more
Saka New Year - Nyepi day of silence
2. Galungan and Kuningan
A festival of harvest and harmony
Good for: Families, History
Galungan is one of Bali’s most celebrated and loved holidays. It follows the 210-day pawukon calendar, so it’s held twice a year with different small holidays leading up to the day. During this 10-day period, gods and ancestors are believed to descend to earth for the festivities.
Galungan essentially celebrates the victory of Dharma (Good) over Adharma (Bad). The festivities are made extra special by the fitting of penjor poles at the entrance to every house. The poles are decorated with harvests from nature such as young coconut leaves, fruits and flowers. The last day of the 10-day festivity is Kuningan, a day for prayer and honoring ancestors. Read more
Galungan and Kuningan
3. Bali Arts Festival
Where creativity comes alive
Good for: History, Photo
The Bali Arts Festival, locally known as Pesta Kesenian Bali, takes place every year from mid-June to mid-July. It’s a yearly fun and creative celebration that showcases a colorful variety of exhibitions and performances as well as various kinds of artworks and cultural achievements.
The festival invites the public to the Niti Mandala Renon square for the lavish opening ceremony with street parades. Then, the Denpasar Arts Center features daily performances, workshops, and exhibitions throughout the remaining duration of the festival.
Location: Denpasar Arts Center (Taman Werdhi Budaya), Jalan Nusa Indah, Denpasar
Phone: +62 (0)361 245294
Bali Arts Festival
4. Ngembak Geni and omed-omedan
From quiet reflection to joyful connection
Good for: Families, Photo
Ngembak Geni is the day after Nyepi (the day of silence). The silence of the Saka New Year celebration ‘breaks’ with the morning sun at 6 am. This is a local vacation in Bali when family visits and travel across the island are commonplace. But there’s one rare and unique event to be seen on the day after Nyepi, known as omed-omedan.
Omed-omedan is celebrated exclusively by the Banjar Kaja community of Sesetan village in Denpasar. Youths and all members of the Banjar Kaja community take to the streets and water is splashed and sprayed. The highlight is two sides of the crowd in a tug-o-war-like scene, and with a pair in the middle smooching at each push and shove.
Ngembak Geni and omed-omedan
5. Bali Spirit Festival
A journey of health, harmony, and happiness
Good for: Adventure, Nightlife, Unusual
Bali Spirit Festival usually takes place in March or April, gathering like-minded yoga instructors and practitioners from around the world. The festival is also a celebration of world arts, dance and music. You can enjoy colorful concerts and performances as part of the festival. A packed agenda features numerous health and well-being workshops which are held in various yoga centres in Ubud and around Bali.
Attracting participants from all corners of the world, the festival fosters a sense of global community and cultural exchange. It’s an opportunity to meet like-minded individuals and build connections with people from diverse backgrounds. Read more
Phone: +62 (0)361 970492
Bali Spirit Festival
6. Ubud Writers & Readers Festival
A meeting of minds and muses
Good for: Couples, Photo
The Ubud Writers & Readers Festival is an annual literary festival that gathers speakers and writers from all over the world to Ubud. The agenda is filled with special literary workshops, book launches, youth’s programs, as well as showcasing Bali arts and culture.
Main sessions usually take place at Indus restaurant and Neka Museum, all of which are located in Sanggingan, Ubud. Over the years, fringe events have also taken place as part of the festival in other venues outside Ubud, and a variety of other associated literary events have also gone beyond Bali, with talks and workshops held in Jakarta, Sulawesi, Sumatera, and Papua.
Ubud Writers & Readers Festival
7. Bali Kite Festival
Soaring traditions and artistry
Good for: Budget, Families, Photo
The Bali Kite Festival or Pesta Layang-Layang Bali is an annual celebration of one of the cultural icons of Bali, the traditional Balinese kite. Bali’s traditional kites come in a few varieties but often built in gigantic wingspans. The kite festival serves as a preservation effort of the art form and is anticipated by the international community and usually involving village kite troupes from all over the island.
These youthful troupes take part in showcasing their gigantic traditional creations as well as contemporary designs. The festival usually takes place around the start of the windy season, between the months of June and August, with dates confirmed following favorable weather conditions.
Open: June–August
Bali Kite Festival
8. Ubud Food Festival
A feast for the senses
Good for: Families, Photo, Food
Ubud Food Festival is an exciting culinary extravaganza that’s usually held for several days in mid-April in Ubud. The festival was born from the success of The Kitchen programs at the Ubud Writers & Readers Festival.
The organizers and the committee came up with a dedicated festival for gastronomy, driven by the passion to share the rich heritage of Indonesian cuisine to the world. The festival regularly features local and international chefs from across the archipelago, with talks and workshops as part of the festival program. Read more
Location: Jalan Raya Sanggingan No. 88X, Kedewatan, Gianyar, Bali 80571, Indonesia
Phone: +62 (0)361 977408
Ubud Food Festival
9. Perang Pandan
Tradition and courage in Tenganan
Good for: History, Photo, Budget, Unusual
Perang Pandan, also referred to by locals as mekare-kare,is a ritual blood sport that’s part of the age-old traditions of the Tenganan Dauh Tukad village in Karangasem. It can also be regarded as a coming-of-age rite among village youths, held in conjunction with the village’s annual Ngusaba Desa purification ceremonies.
The remote village of Tenganan Dauh Tukad is an approximate 78 km east of Denpasar. The Ngusaba Desa has many different ceremonial highlights, but Perang Pandan attracts spectators the most to its arena where bare-breasted village boys take turns in dueling. They’re armed only with rattan shields and a tied packet of thorny pandanus as weapons. Perang Pandan usually takes place in June.
Location: Tenganan, Manggis, Karangasem, Bali 80871, Indonesia
Perang Pandan
10. Sanur Village Festival
A coastal celebration of creativity
Good for: Budget, Food, Photo
Sanur Village Festival is an annual celebration of arts and culture by the Sanur beach community. The festival usually features a week full of cultural highlights as well as food, water sports and environmental-awareness events. The festival’s week-long calendar is usually focused in the Maisonette area of the Inna Grand Bali Beach Hotel in Sanur.
Over the years, the festival features additional events that involve the food and beverage industry, fashion, yoga and wellbeing, sports, and environmental campaigns. Creative expos and a Sanur Run marathon were also featured in previous years. The festival often takes place in August, and cultural street parades usually mark the festival opening, held along the main streets of Sanur village. Read more
Location: Yayasan Pembangunan Sanur (YPS), Jalan Danau Buyan III No.2, Sanur, Denpasar, Bali 80227, Indonesia
Sanur Village Festival
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