Banyuwangi Ethno Carnival: Inside Indonesia's Ethnic Fashion Spectacle

Every year, a 2 kilometer stretch of Banyuwangi's main street turns into something closer to a runway than a road. Costumes towering over their wearers move slowly down the route, drums and traditional music fill the air, and thousands of spectators line up hours in advance just to get a good view. This is Banyuwangi Ethno Carnival, better known simply as BEC, and it has grown into one of the most recognizable cultural events in East Java.

How it all began

BEC was first held in October 2011, part of a broader push by the Banyuwangi regency government to bring local arts and culture into the modern spotlight without stripping away their original meaning. The idea was straightforward on paper: take the ethnic identity of Banyuwangi, particularly its Osing heritage, and present it through a large scale costume parade that could stand alongside other well known Indonesian carnivals.

The very first edition carried the theme Ikon Kesenian Banyuwangi, showcasing local performing arts through three groups known as defile, based on Damarwulan, Gandrung, and Kundaran traditions. It set the format that BEC has followed ever since, participants divided into themed groups, each telling a different piece of the larger story through costume design and movement.

A different theme every year

What keeps BEC interesting year after year is that no two editions look alike. In 2012, the event turned to Re-Barong Using, drawing on the region's barong tradition and dividing participants into red, yellow, and green groups symbolizing courage, hope, and fertility. The following year explored Kebo-keboan, a ritual involving human performers dressed as buffalo, tied to local agricultural traditions.

Later years continued in the same spirit. 2014 brought Seblang, referencing a trance dance performed by women in a state of unconsciousness. 2015 turned toward Usingnese wedding customs, and 2016 retold the legend of Sritanjung Sidopekso, a folk story connected to how Banyuwangi got its name. More recent editions have continued this pattern, including a 2024 theme celebrating the diversity of Banyuwangi's 189 villages, and a 2025 theme called Ngelukat, exploring purification rituals across different stages of life within Osing culture.

More than just costumes

It is easy to focus on the visuals alone, since BEC costumes are genuinely spectacular, often weighing several kilograms and requiring months of preparation from local designers and craftsmen. But the event carries weight beyond spectacle. BEC has become part of Karisma Event Nusantara, a national calendar of standout Indonesian cultural events, putting Banyuwangi on the same list as some of the country's biggest festivals.

It has also become a genuine economic driver for the local creative industry. Designers, tailors, and craftsmen who specialize in wing structures, headpieces, and ornamental carving all see a spike in commissions ahead of each event, with individual costumes sometimes costing between Rp10 million and Rp20 million to produce. For many local artisans, BEC season is one of the busiest and most profitable periods of the year.

A stage for cultural pride

Beyond the economics, BEC gives young Banyuwangi residents a very public way to connect with their own heritage. Participants are not simply models walking a route, they often research the cultural background behind their assigned theme, learn traditional dance elements tied to their costume, and perform a kind of fashion dance that blends runway movement with local choreography.

International visitors have taken notice too, with tourists occasionally joining the parade themselves, drawn in by the atmosphere and the openness of the event. For a district once known mostly for Kawah Ijen's blue fire and its beaches, BEC has added another reason for travelers to plan a trip around a specific date on the calendar.