Early Bird
Ticket Sale
Ends Soon!

Five days, over 100 sessions, and one of Asia’s leading literary gatherings returning for its 23rd year in Ubud. The Early Bird 4-Day Festival Pass gives you full access to talks, panels, readings, and conversations that matter from 21–25 October 2026. After 18 August, prices will go up and will not come down again.
4-Day Festival Pass
Get Your Pass Now

OUR SPEAKERS

We are thrilled to reveal the first wave of extraordinary voices joining us in Ubud from 21 to 25 October 2026.
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Join us for compelling, challenging, and honest discussions, guided by our 2026 Festival theme: Samarasā: Awareness. Empathy. Action.

The four-day programme will be guided by the theme Samarasā: Awareness. Empathy. Action., which comes from Sanskrit philosophy and emphasises the harmony between Citta (mind), Rasa (heart), and Karsa (action). It invites reflection on how thought, feeling, and action can exist in harmony.

We explore the forces that shape us to find a perfect balance of awareness, empathy, and action. From the technological to the spiritual, the personal, and the environmental, we trace the cycles of our existence, not just to understand where we have been, but to guide humanity toward where we must go: a future defined by compassionate response.

We are also thrilled to reveal this year’s artwork by Balinese artist Wayan Aris Sarmanta, a young talent whose work originates from his hometown’s Batuan painting style.

I am so excited to have had the opportunity to illustrate this year’s artwork. I wanted to create one single, unified image, with mythical creatures and landscapes shimmering with energy. I hope the viewer can become tangled up in all its forms and be left with only a memory of collected minutiae.
Wayan Aris Sarmanta, Balinese Artist


Join our
School Programme

For students, we offer fun, interactive, and educational discussions and workshops with some of the world’s most exciting literary talents joining our 2026 Festival.
2026 Programme
Learn More
What I appreciate most about Ubud Writers & Readers Festival is the absence of censorship. Ideas and conversations flow in all directions, boldly and vibrantly, just as they should.
Isabelle Amy, 2025 Festival Attendee
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