Nyepi 2027: the day Bali goes silent

Picture an island with more than four million people where nobody goes outside for a full day. No cars, no scooters, no lights, no music. The airport is closed and sometimes even the mobile internet goes down. That is Nyepi, the day of silence that marks the start of the new year in the Balinese saka calendar. In 2027 Nyepi falls on Monday 8 March, from 6 am until 6 am the next morning.

The days before: cleansing and noise

A few days before Nyepi, processions head to the sea or to a holy spring for Melasti, a purification ceremony. People dressed in white carry temple objects under parasols to the water. If you are near the coast, it is quite a sight – watch from a distance and don't walk through it.

The evening before Nyepi is the opposite of silent. In every village the ogoh-ogoh take to the streets: huge figures of papier-mâché and bamboo, monsters and demons that the village's young people have worked on for months. They are carried through the streets with music and a lot of shouting to chase away the evil spirits, and are often burned afterwards. It is one of the best evenings of the year to be in Bali.

Nyepi itself: four rules

On Nyepi the Balinese keep four prohibitions: no fire or light, no work, no travel and no entertainment. The idea is that the evil spirits fly over the island, see no one and leave again. For you as a visitor, this means:

• You stay on the grounds of your accommodation all day. The pecalang, the village guards, make sure of it.
• The airport and the harbours are closed. No flights leave or land.
• In the evening you keep the curtains closed and the lights low. Many hotels provide food.
• Save music and loud voices for indoors.

Many travellers find it a special day: reading, swimming in the pool where you are staying and, at night, a starry sky without light pollution.

The day after

On Ngembak Geni, the day after Nyepi, life goes on again. Families visit each other and ask each other for forgiveness. The roads stay quiet for the first few hours.

Planning your trip around it

• Don't plan a flight on 8 March. Land on 6 March at the latest, and you will also be there for the ogoh-ogoh evening on 7 March.
• Choose where you spend Nyepi with care. A place with a pool and food, in a village where you can see the ogoh-ogoh. In Ubud and Sidemen the parades are small-scale and worth watching.
• Don't plan a drive on 8 March. Dek Leonk is at home with his family that day.
• Do your shopping on 7 March. Shops and warungs are closed on Nyepi.

Want to experience Nyepi? Put it in your personal trip plan, and we will find the right place to stay and the right spot for the parade.