The Balinese New Year is known as Nyepi and is celebrated according to the Saka lunar calendar, on the dark of the moon of the spring equinox, usually falling in March or early April. Although Nyepi is a traditional Balinese Hindu celebration, it has recently become a national holiday in Indonesia.

The word nyepi comes from ‘sepi’, meaning ‘empty’. The traditional idea is to make the world appear as if deserted, so that disruptive spirits will abandon the island.

On Nyepi, everyone is asked to stay inside their home compound for 24 hours, from dawn to the following dawn. Visitors, too, must comply with this custom and are asked not to stray from the hotel grounds. There is no traffic on the roads, and in the evening, lights are not to be turned on. Ngurah Rai Airport is closed to all flights.

Many visitors remark on the extraordinary quiet and peacefulness of this day of silence.

The Balinese people treat Nyepi as an opportunity to meditate and fast. The importance of this holy day is to detach oneself from the world and seek inward peace.