Festivities The Bali Way | NOW! Bali November - December 2026

As the year-end holidays approach, with Christmas and New Year's Eve taking over the festivities, we thought this as an opportunity to explore how festivities unfold on the Islands of the Gods.

First we look to music, in the same way that it is central to the Christmas experience, music is an essential element in Balinese ceremonies too – and in fact, as you will read, they are prescribed requirement.

Then we move to decorations, with shimmering adornments of the festive season sure to takeover our public spaces, the Balinese too embellish their sacred spaces ahead of major ceremonies. What are the different elements of Balinese ornamentation, and what (as everything has symbolism here) do they mean or represent? On this subject, we meet with one Balinese art collective who are bringing their traditional craftsmanship into modern environments.

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