Top picks from this guide
#1
Ubud and the lanes around it
The three dispensation days in the middle of the week — 16, 17 and 18 June 2026 — are the ones with the most ceremony traffic on the road. Penjor are up from the afternoon of Penampahan onward and stand until 22 July 2026, so the penjor are not what those three days add. Tour infrastructure keeps working here, and our drivers work all five days. How much else pauses is not published, so we do not promise that a specific warung or shop will be open. What changes is the traffic, because processions close short stretches without notice and reopen them a while later. Our Ubud day runs at $65 per car, entrance tickets paid per person on top, and on these dates the value is in the driver knowing the back lanes rather than in the itinerary.
#2
Ngelawang villages
A Barong Bangkung walks the street with a beleganjur gamelan and a crowd of children, money is handed over on canang sari, and the purpose is tolak bala. The window is the days between Galungan on 17 June 2026 and Kuningan on 27 June 2026, and the day after Kuningan. Our source puts it in Gianyar and Badung above all, not across the whole island, so we do not sell it as something you will see anywhere you happen to be. Nobody publishes a route or a time.
#3
Jatiluwih and the Tabanan highlands
We run Jatiluwih the same way through Galungan week as any other week: a private car with a driver at $59 for the day, entrance tickets paid per person on top. This is the fallback we reach for when someone wants a full day out on 17 June 2026 without the risk of arriving at a gate that a village has closed for its own ceremony. The terraces answer to a planting calendar, not to Pawukon, so the holiday changes nothing about what you see there.
#4
Tanah Lot and Bedugul
The route goes ahead on all five dispensation days, at $65 per car plus $20 per person in tickets. What we will not do is promise a specific ceremony at a specific temple on that road: odalan dates are set village by village and there is no single island schedule to check them against. If a gate is closed on the day, the driver reorders the stops rather than cancelling the day.
#5
Pura Lempuyang
In 2026 Lempuyang was closed to visitors for five days over Galungan and reopened on Monday 22 June 2026. The announcement came from I Nyoman Jati, head of the Purwayu traditional village; the reason given was Pujawali and Pidolan, pecalang were posted at the entrance, and guides and private drivers were told in advance. The first closed day was never published, so we state only the reopening. We do not put the gate on a Galungan-week route without a confirmation for that year.
#6
Penglipuran
In 2026 Penglipuran cancelled its Galungan celebration and did not put up penjor at all, following a recent death in the community. The village stayed open seven days a week from 08:00 to 18:30, bamboo forest included. That is the point worth taking away: a village can be open and still have nothing of the holiday to show, and in 2026 there were no penjor standing there to see.
#7
Any main road on Galungan morning
Galungan is not on Indonesia's national holiday list, so the days off are a Bali provincial dispensation and the rest of the country works. Traffic is local rather than national: families moving between family temples, processions occupying a lane, roadside parking where there is usually none. On Kuningan itself, 27 June 2026, the activity concentrates before noon. A car with a driver is $59 for the day, and that is the line item that absorbs the delay.
Why the date moves: a 210-day calendar, not a lunar one
Galungan is not late or early. It runs on Pawukon, a cycle of 210 days made of 30 wuku of seven days each, running in fixed order from Sinta to Watugunung. Galungan sits in Dunggulan, the eleventh wuku, which occupies days 71 to 77 of the cycle. Ten more weeks turn at the same time, from the one-day week to the ten-day week — Ekawara through Dasawara — and a Balinese date is the intersection of several of them at once rather than a position in a month.
Only the three-, five-, six- and seven-day weeks divide 210 evenly. The four-, eight- and nine-day weeks do not, and the calendar patches the remainder by hand: in both the four-day and the eight-day week the second-to-last day is repeated twice in the week that would otherwise have ended on day 72, and in the nine-day week the first day is repeated three times in the opening week. That patch sits right next to Galungan, which is one reason the arithmetic looks arbitrary from outside and is not.
Galungan is where three of those cycles meet: Buda in the seven-day week, Keliwon in the five-day week, and the wuku Dunggulan. Buda is Wednesday, so Galungan is always a Wednesday. Kuningan is Saniscara Keliwon Kuningan, day 84 of the cycle, exactly 10 days later, so Kuningan is always a Saturday. The gap between them never changes and never needs looking up.
There is also a ritual month here, and it is 35 days long — the interval at which the five-day and seven-day weeks come back into phase. Six of those make the full 210. If you are planning a trip by calendar month, this is the one grid on the island that ignores months completely, which is worth holding alongside a normal month-by-month view of the Bali year.
Confirmed dates through 2028, and why 2026 has only one Galungan
The dates: in 2025, Galungan fell on 23 April 2025 and 19 November 2025. In 2026 there is one, Wednesday 17 June 2026, with Kuningan on Saturday 27 June 2026. In 2027 there are two, 13 January 2027 and 11 August 2027, with Kuningan on 23 January 2027 and 21 August 2027. In 2028 there are two again, 8 March 2028 and 4 October 2028, with Kuningan on 18 March 2028 and 14 October 2028.
The chain runs at exactly 210 days with no exceptions: 19 November 2025 to 17 June 2026 to 13 January 2027 to 11 August 2027 to 8 March 2028 to 4 October 2028. Divide the solar year by the cycle — 365.2425 over 210 — and you get 1.74 Galungans a year. An average of 1.74 means most years hold two and some hold one, and 2026 is one of the single-Galungan years because the November 2025 date and the January 2027 date fall just outside it on either side.
Where the 2026 date comes from matters if you are trying to verify it yourself. It is not in the joint decree of three ministers that fixes Indonesia's public holidays, because Galungan is not a national holiday of Indonesia. It is in a circular of the Hindu directorate general at the ministry of religious affairs, number B-253/DJ.VI/Dt.VI.I.3/BA.03/09/2025. We checked every date above one at a time against kalenderbali.org, and they match the published table on Wikipedia.
The five days off are provincial, not national
The days off come from a circular of the governor of Bali, number B.30.800.1.6.2/61594/PK/BKPSDM, dated 6 October 2025 and signed by Wayan Koster. It lists five days around this holiday: Tuesday 16 June 2026 Penampahan Galungan, Wednesday 17 June 2026 Galungan, Thursday 18 June 2026 Umanis Galungan, Friday 26 June 2026 Penampahan Kuningan, and Saturday 27 June 2026 Kuningan.
The document calls these a dispensation for Balinese Hindu holy days, not a facultative holiday. The second phrase is widely used and comes from how the ministry frames it, but it is not the wording of the provincial circular. The same circular carries 13 dispensation entries for 2026 in total; the five above are the ones attached to Galungan and Kuningan.
The ceremonial sequence is longer than the five days off. It runs Sugihan Jawa on 11 June 2026, Sugihan Bali on 12 June 2026, Penyekeban on 14 June 2026, Penyajaan on 15 June 2026, Penampahan on 16 June 2026, Galungan on 17 June 2026, Umanis Galungan on 18 June 2026, Pemaridan Guru on 20 June 2026, Ulihan on 21 June 2026, Pemacekan Agung on 22 June 2026, Buda Paing Kuningan on 24 June 2026, Penampahan Kuningan on 26 June 2026 and Kuningan on 27 June 2026. Every one of those offsets is tied to the wuku and the concurrent weeks rather than to the moon, so the same spacing carries over to 2027 and 2028 unchanged.
One thing we cannot tell you is how much of the tourism industry actually pauses. There is no published figure for hotel occupancy or for how many operators stand down over Galungan, and we are not going to invent a percentage. What we can say from our own dispatch is that a car with a driver at $59 for the day is bookable on all five dates, and that the constraint on the day is road closures rather than staff.
Penjor: when they go up, when they come down
The rule as written is precise. Penjor are installed on Anggara Wage of wuku Dungulan, the day before Galungan, and the same guidance adds that they should go up on Penampahan itself, after twelve noon. For 2026 that is the afternoon of Tuesday 16 June 2026.
The same publication from the Buleleng administration then admits what happens in practice: many households put their penjor up before Penampahan, and mostly on a Sunday. So the picture of a street transforming in one afternoon is not something we will promise you. The build-up is staggered across several days, and a street photographed on the Sunday before will already have penjor on it while the house next door is still empty.
They come down on Buda Kliwon Pahang. In 2026 that is Wednesday 22 July 2026, exactly 35 days after Galungan, because Dunggulan is wuku number 11 and Pahang is number 16, five wuku on. The attributes are burned and the ash placed in a klungah nyuh gading together with kawangen and 11 kepeng coins. The same source also allows a household to take the penjor down the day after Kuningan, on Redite Umanis Langkir, so both practices are correct.
A caveat on a number you will see repeated: the figure of 42 days appears a paragraph earlier in that same publication, which contradicts its own wuku arithmetic. We count 35. The practical consequence is generous either way — in 2026 the penjor window ran roughly from 16 June 2026 to 22 July 2026, which is a month longer than the holiday week most people plan around.
What this means for a traveller's day
The infrastructure keeps working and specific temples do not. In 2026 Pura Lempuyang was closed to visitors for five days over the holiday and reopened on Monday 22 June 2026; the head of the Purwayu traditional village, I Nyoman Jati, announced it, the reason was Pujawali and Pidolan, and pecalang were on the entrance. Guides and private drivers were warned in advance. The first day of the closure was never published, so 22 June 2026 is the only date we will state. We do not put the gate on a Galungan-week itinerary without a fresh confirmation, and we would rather lose the booking than drive you to a closed entrance.
Penglipuran is the other one we handle without a sales line. In 2026 the village cancelled its Galungan celebration and put up no penjor at all, after a recent death in the community. It remained open seven days a week from 08:00 to 18:30, bamboo forest included, so the visit was possible and the reason for going was not. Treat any listing that markets Penglipuran as the penjor village as a description of a normal year rather than a promise about yours.
Ngelawang is worth looking for. A Barong Bangkung is walked from house to house with a beleganjur gamelan and a crowd of children, money goes on the canang sari, and the point of it is tolak bala. Look for it on the days between Galungan on 17 June 2026 and Kuningan on 27 June 2026, and on the day after Kuningan — and above all in Gianyar and Badung, which is as far as our source goes. It is not an island-wide guarantee and there is no timetable.
On Kuningan itself the day is front-loaded. The guidance is that Kuningan prayers should not be made after twelve noon, and the same text says plainly that this is an ethic of timing rather than an absolute prohibition, so what you get in practice is activity concentrated in the morning and a quiet afternoon. Plan the drive accordingly. Our Ubud day at $65 per car, entrance tickets paid per person on top, runs through the holiday week, and so does a day built around viewpoints and rice terraces, which follow a planting calendar rather than Pawukon. One last detail for anyone reading about Galungan Nadi, the Galungan that coincides with a full moon: 17 June 2026 is not one, and neither of the 2028 dates is one either. We have not verified the two 2027 dates against the penanggal, so we make no claim about them.
FAQ
When is Galungan in 2026?
Wednesday 17 June 2026, and it is the only Galungan of that year. Kuningan follows ten days later on Saturday 27 June 2026. Galungan always falls on a Wednesday and Kuningan always on a Saturday, because both are defined as intersections of the seven-day and five-day weeks with a named wuku rather than as calendar dates.
Why does 2026 have only one Galungan?
Because the cycle is 210 days and the solar year is longer than one cycle but shorter than two. Dividing 365.2425 by 210 gives 1.74 Galungans a year, so most years hold two and some hold one. The chain runs 19 November 2025, 17 June 2026, 13 January 2027 — the two neighbours fall outside 2026 on either side.
What are the Galungan and Kuningan dates for 2027 and 2028?
In 2027, Galungan falls on 13 January 2027 and 11 August 2027, with Kuningan on 23 January 2027 and 21 August 2027. In 2028, Galungan is on 8 March 2028 and 4 October 2028, with Kuningan on 18 March 2028 and 14 October 2028. Each Galungan is exactly 210 days after the previous one.
Is Galungan a public holiday in Indonesia?
No. Galungan is not on the national holiday list, and the 2026 date comes from a circular of the Hindu directorate general at the ministry of religious affairs, number B-253/DJ.VI/Dt.VI.I.3/BA.03/09/2025. The days off are a Bali provincial dispensation, set by a circular of the governor dated 6 October 2025 and signed by Wayan Koster.
Which days are off in Bali for Galungan 2026?
Five: Tuesday 16 June 2026 Penampahan Galungan, Wednesday 17 June 2026 Galungan, Thursday 18 June 2026 Umanis Galungan, Friday 26 June 2026 Penampahan Kuningan and Saturday 27 June 2026 Kuningan. The governor's circular carries 13 dispensation entries for 2026 in total, of which these five belong to this holiday.
How long do penjor stay up?
35 days. They are meant to go up on Penampahan after twelve noon — the afternoon of 16 June 2026 — and come down on Buda Kliwon Pahang, which in 2026 was Wednesday 22 July 2026. Some households take them down the day after Kuningan instead, on Redite Umanis Langkir. A figure of 42 days circulates and contradicts the wuku arithmetic in the same source.
Can I visit Lempuyang during Galungan week?
Not without checking for that year. In 2026 Pura Lempuyang was closed to visitors for five days and reopened on Monday 22 June 2026, announced by I Nyoman Jati of the Purwayu traditional village, with Pujawali and Pidolan as the reason and pecalang on the entrance. The first closed day was never published. We do not schedule the gate that week without a confirmation.
Where can I see ngelawang, and will Penglipuran have penjor?
Ngelawang runs on the days between Galungan on 17 June 2026 and Kuningan on 27 June 2026, and on the day after Kuningan, and the source points to Gianyar and Badung rather than the whole island. There is no timetable. As for Penglipuran, in 2026 the village cancelled the celebration and put up no penjor at all after a death in the community, while staying open 08:00 to 18:30, so no one can promise you penjor there.
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