On the last day of 2021, we celebrated New Year’s Eve with lots of fun activities for solo travellers, couples, and even families. There were many cheers, smiles and laughter. For the countdown for the end of 2022 we decided to celebrate in a similar fashion but this time our international guests were able to join us.
 
We began the celebration early in the day with a cooking class. Guests had the chance to experience how to make traditional Balinese sweet bites such as Dadar Gulung. This was guided by Tanah Gajah’s culinary team at Panen Padi Lounge, overlooking our rice paddy field.

Afterwards there was a cocktail making class, guided by The Tempayan restaurant’s bartender. Guests picked their own fresh herbs, edible garnishes and fresh fruit at our organic garden, which were then shaken or stirred together with their favourite spirits into refreshing cocktails and mocktails. The drinks were the perfect sundown companion.
 

 
Cultural activities such as Balinese dance and music introduction classes as well as Balinese offering-making classes were also available for guests who would like to learn more about the beauty of Balinese culture in a fun way.
 

 
Towards the evening, guests were invited to write their wishes for the year ahead before taking part in a breathtakingly beautiful candle-lighting ceremony. Guests were escorted by a procession of locals through the rice paddy field towards a platform where guests lit a candle to symbolize that we can see a light at the end of the tunnel, after some challenging times. The ceremony was accompanied by a mesmerizing Balinese gamelan orchestra in the background.
 

 
The ceremony ended at The Tempayan restaurant with a 5-course dinner, followed by an evening hot air balloon flights.

 

The memorable evening went by so quickly with a lot of smiles and laughter, which makes a promising start to the year 2023.
 
More photos of the new year’s eve celebration can be found here.