Best Times to Visit Bali for Cultural Events
A visit to Bali will almost certainly see you witness a fascinating ceremony – there are hundreds of them, varied from Jatakarma Samskara when a baby is born to Pitra Yadya, otherwise known as Ngaben for a funeral. Here are our top picks of the Balinese-Hindu ceremonies to experience at least once in a lifetime when staying at Four Seasons Resorts Bali at Jimbaran Bay and Sayan. The dates for ceremonies change each year according to the Balinese Lunar calendar; ask the Concierge for the upcoming year’s schedule.
Bali was first put on the tourist map in the 1920s by the Royal Dutch Steam Packet Company, and by the 1930s it was welcoming some 100 visitors a year. Artists such as Noël Coward, Charlie Chaplin and Walter Spies were drawn to the innate artistic expression of everyday Balinese life. Through dance, paintings, temple architecture, their homes and villages, daily offerings, ceremonial offerings, clothing, food and more, the Balinese brought art to everything they did. It is said the artistic "gene" of the Balinese stems from the Majapahit era, at the end of which the island was set aside as Indonesia’s only remaining Hindu sanctuary for artists, intellectuals, high priests and royal families.
