Location: Denpasar Bali, Indonesia

Attraction(s): Bali Festivals

What You Should Know: Calendar of Events And Festivals 2012


For every Balinese, Bali festivals, events, and ritual ceremonies are an important part of their daily, religious, and social life, determined and held according to their Bali calendar. Without these Bali events, festivals, and rituals, their life cycle, social structure, and connection with the heavenly world will be incomplete. In 1 year alone, you’ll be surprised how many there are.



Permanent fixtures in the lives of the Balinese, these Bali festivals are afforded great meanings by Balinese culture. There are some festivals in Bali that are dedicated to certain gods, including those who symbolize knowledge, virtue, or birth.



Temple festivals, harvest festivals, fasting and retreat festivals, blood sacrifices, and life-cycle ceremonies  which are events celebrated to mark the passage of a Balinese as he progresses in his life from birth, birthday, tooth filings, wedding until funeral rites, and cremation  are all part and parcel of Bali festivals.



So not surprisingly, as at every stage of a Balinese life there is a ceremony or ritual taking place together with other Bali festivals at full moon, a new calendar year or other days are considered important. It is, therefore, extremely obvious that when you visit Bali, you will always see Bali events and festivals going on somewhere on the island.



Bali festivals and events are an integral part of Balinese life and a huge part of the mysticism and allure that sets Bali apart from any other land as most months of the year, Bali has something of interest happening, with various seasonal things to do and tourist-friendly events taking place as well as major events taking place nearly every six months or every 210 days!



This year, one of the most important festival months on Bali is March, when the exciting Melasti, Galungan and Nyepi religious festivals are taking place and are always being the cause for much celebration.



Melasti is a purification festival held the day before Nyepi. This is the loud part of the two-day event, where well-dressed villagers offer flowers and fruit and holy men sacrifice pigs amid the din of gamelan and drums and lots of merry shouting. Then all must fall silent the following day on Nyepi.



Nyepi festival is one of Bali holidays where everyone in Bali, including tourists, must remain silent. It is a day of absolute silence throughout the island after Melasti welcomes the beginning of the lunar year with a silent vigil to fool the spirits. Bali’s airport is closed on Nyepi and no one is permitted to leave their villa for rent.



The most important Bali festival is Galungan. It is held throughout the island and is an annual event each March in the wuku year, celebrating the victory of virtue over evil, the victory of good Dharma over the evil Adharma. It is a ten day festival where it is believed that all the gods, including the supreme deity Sanghyang Widi, come down to earth for the festivities. Barongs prance from temple to temple and village to village.



The Bali Arts Festival runs between mid-June through mid-July. It a great time to visit Bali as this festival celebrates the arts and culture of Bali. Never will you have a better chance to witness Bali’s glorious culture so close at hand. The main events are held each year at the Taman Budaya (Art Centre) in east Denpasar.



The Bali Kite Festival is a fun event where one sees hundreds of kites in a myriad of forms and colors, decorating the blue Bali skies, treating foreign travelers to yet another aspect of the island’s unique culture. The festival is a real boon for tourists who want to get a unique glimpse of another side of Bali.



Villa Bali is one of the favorite accommodations of tourists who want to witness these Bali festivals. Bali has many private villas for rent where travelers can easily and affordably stay and thereby be near on hand to witness these Bali festivals.



Private villa Bali are found mostly in the greater Seminyak area (Seminyak, Umalas, Canggu), in the south around Jimbaran and Uluwatu, in Sanur and around the hill town of Ubud — the center of art and dance in the foothills  as well as Lovina in north Bali.