Nyepi, the Day of Silence

On Nyepi, Bali goes quiet. For 24 hours, from 6 am to 6 am the next morning, nobody cooks with fire, nobody works, nobody travels and nobody entertains. The airport is closed, with no arrivals or departures, and mobile internet is cut or restricted in most places. Outside lights stay off, indoor lights are kept low, and the beaches and streets are empty. The rules apply to non-Hindu residents and to tourists too, who must stay in their hotels or villas.

The silence is the end of a loud night. The evening before Nyepi, communities across the island parade ogoh-ogoh, giant effigies of demons carried through the streets, in a ritual that drives out the bad spirits of the old year. The ceremonies before it include Melasti, a purification at the sea. Nyepi opens the Saka new year, 1949 in 2027.

In 2027 the parades are on the evening of Sunday, 7 March, and Nyepi day is Monday, 8 March, a national holiday. The day after Nyepi is Ngembak Geni, when people carry out their rituals and ask each other's forgiveness. Nyepi follows the lunar Saka calendar, so the date changes every year, and in 2026 it was on 19 March.

How to go. Book a hotel or villa for the whole stretch, because you cannot move for 24 hours, and ask the property how it handles Nyepi: how food is served, and whether the pool, lights and Wi-Fi are allowed or switched off. Check your flights, as the airport is closed on the day, and arrive the day before. Join the ogoh-ogoh parades from the roadside in the evening of 7 March in the town you are staying in. Stock water and snacks, keep noise down, and respect the rules. It is a strange and calm day.