Rainforest World Music Festival 2026

The Rainforest World Music Festival (RWMF) takes place annually at the Sarawak Cultural Village at the foot of Mount Santubong, about 35km from Kuching. The 2026 dates are expected in the second or third week of July - check rwmf.net for confirmed dates as the festival announces them each year.

RWMF brings together musicians from across Southeast Asia, West Africa, Latin America, Eastern Europe, and the Middle East alongside Sarawak’s indigenous musicians - Iban, Bidayuh, Orang Ulu, Kenyah, and Melanau performers. Days are structured around afternoon workshops where musicians share instruments and techniques across cultures, culminating in evening concerts that run until late. The outdoor stage with jungle and mountain backdrop is one of the more atmospheric festival venues in Asia.

Tickets typically run RM180–280 per day (USD 38–60) or RM380–480 for a three-day pass. Accommodation in Kuching and around Santubong books out months in advance for the festival weekend. The Sarawak Cultural Village also functions as an open-air ethnographic museum with longhouse replicas representing each of Sarawak’s major ethnic groups, making it worth visiting outside the festival too.

Past RWMF lineups have included musicians from Mali, Brazil, Madagascar, Hungary, Iran, and the Philippines alongside Sarawakian masters of the sape - a plucked lute unique to Borneo. The afternoon workshop sessions, where musicians from different traditions collaborate on stage and teach instruments to the audience, are often the highlight for visitors who follow world music closely.

Practical considerations for the festival: evenings at Santubong involve standing on grass, so waterproof footwear is useful in case of rain. The jungle setting means insects are present - bring repellent. Shuttle buses run from Kuching city centre to the venue and back. July in Kuching is warm and humid with occasional afternoon showers; temperatures sit around 28–32°C. Accommodation in Kuching itself - roughly 35–40 minutes by road from the venue - is more plentiful than near Santubong, and the road transport is straightforward.