Spirit Festival in Bali, Ubud. 1-5 May, 2024

Bali Spirit Festival is back in 2024: its 16th year as the best festival for those seeking a spiritual awakening in Bali. Since its first inception in 2008, the festival has become a place of celebration of dance, music, yoga, healing, and friendship and Ubud has been the festival’s host. This year, the festival will be ongoing for five days in Ubud where the global community will merge into one to inspire others and bring a change to the local community and environment.

Bali Spirit Festival: The Festival of Yoga in Indonesia

Bali Spirit Festival was first held in 2008 by a trio of individuals who wanted to create a global community where yoga, music events, and dance could combine to create a venue of healing. The bombings in Bali that occurred in 2002 and 2005 impacted tourism on the island, thus, the three co-founders, Robert Weber, Kadek Gunarta, and Meghan Pappenheim, wanted to attract international holistic travellers via a festival that upheld the Tri Hita Karana, which is a Balinese philosophy about harmony with God, harmony with nature, and harmony with other human beings. Ubud was picked due to its lush environment and its reputation as a holistic experience centre in Bali, providing a perfect place for the festival’s purpose.

Nowadays, the festival attracts thousands of people and is one of the world’s leading yoga festivals. The core of the Bali Spirit Festival hasn’t changed, which is to ensure that anyone can take part in the festival to experience positive change within themselves. Hopefully, this change will then spread to also bring positive change to their community and the environment.

The Bali Spirit Festival Is More Than Just a Dance or Yoga

Tickets for the Bali Spirit Festival are usually sold a few months before the event takes place in Ubud. The festival offers different types of packages, including a 1-Day Music Pass, 1-Night Music Pass, and All Access (providing access to all public yoga, as well as numerous performances). The Bali Spirit Festival 2024 is accompanied by the tagline ‘A Global Celebration of Yoga, Dance, Music, and Healing’. This year, the event will take place at The Yoga Barn and The Puri Padi Hotel.

What can you expect at The Bali Spirit Festival 2024?

• Yoga, Dance and Music – as the core of the Bali Spirit Festival since its inception, there are many different types of yoga, meditations, and music workshops that you can attend. There are different yoga sessions every day, as well as meditations that you can actively become involved with. Moreover, all events are conducted by certified yogi practitioners.
• Breathwork – breathwork is one of the key wellness activities that you can participate in at this yoga festival. The breathwork exercise and workshops aim to complement the yoga by introducing breathing techniques, which are an integral part of doing not only yoga but also other exercises.
• Healing Huts – during the festival, you also have the opportunity to book a private session with experts like tarot readers, Reiki masters, and other professionals to gain more insight into your personal growth and spiritual well-being.
• Workshops – you can also find various workshops at the festival via dancing, yoga, martial arts, and talks and seminars from wellness teachers, authors, musicians, and many more.
• Food – available throughout the festival is the organic food provided by healthy restaurants around Ubud to ensure that your food intake is nutritious and delicious at the same time.

Outreach Programs at Bali Spirit Festival 2024

The two outreach programs at the Bali Spirit Festival haven’t changed from previous years. These programs become the annual highlights of the festival: Bali Regreen and Ayo! Kita Bicara HIV and AIDS (Let’s Talk HIV & AIDS), which focus on reforestation initiatives, and HIV and AIDS education, respectively.

Since 2010, the Bali Spirit Festival has raised funds for its annual Karma outreach initiatives. The fund has contributed to helping local communities in various ways, such as via children’s programs, education, health awareness (especially about HIV and AIDS) and, of course, environmental protection.

Tips for Bali Spirit Festival 2024

Since this is a popular festival, a large number of people will be participating. To ensure that you have the greatest experience and gain the maximum benefits, please pay attention to the following:

• Bring a water bottle, bug spray, cash/credit card, a small pouch with your name and phone numbers, sunscreen, a towel, and yoga mats. You can also rent or buy the yoga mats at the Bali Yoga Shop
• The schedules of all public yoga classes and meditations are subject to change due to various factors
• Come as early as possible as all the events and classes, including meditations at the Tea Temple or Water Shiatsu classes, are on a first-come-first-serve basis and have limited capacity
• Book the resort or hotel as early as possible since the accommodations around the venues (The Yoga Barn and the Puri Padi Hotel) get fully booked once the next festival date is announced.

The Bali Spirit Festival 2024 has always been a festival that helps showcase the best of Balinese culture from different angles, through traditions of healing and wellness. Enjoy the experience of healing at the biggest yoga festival in Bali!