Pesta Kalimaran 2026: Sabah's Murut Festival, Dates and Venue

When is Pesta Kalimaran?

Pesta Kalimaran 2026 dates are to be confirmed. In January 2026 the Tenom Visit Year 2026 committee, chaired by the Tenom District Officer, listed Pesta Kalimaran among the district's planned events but gave no date (Warta Oriental, 14 January 2026). We have not found a report of the 2026 festival as of 20 October 2026.

The date has moved over the years. In 2019 the state announced 31 March as the festival's official date (Daily Express, 28 March 2019), but the two most recent state-level editions were held later in the year:

Sources: 2019 from KePKAS; 2024 from Nabalu News (17 September 2024); 2025 from Daily Express (11 August 2025).

What is Pesta Kalimaran?

Pesta Kalimaran, also called Ilau Kalimaran, is a festival of Murut traditional arts and culture, held to keep that culture alive, especially for younger generations (Nabalu News, 17 September 2024). It began in 2003 and was rebranded from the older Tamu Besar Injawari or Panawari, which Murut ancestors celebrated before and after independence, according to festival adviser Datuk Rubin Balang (Daily Express, 20 September 2024).

At the 2025 edition, Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Seri Dr Joachim Gunsalam described the festival as a significant government effort to raise Murut arts and heritage to a global level, naming the Murut Tahol, Timugon and Bookan and the Lundayeh. The 2025 theme was "Ahahanggoi Am Sumingkot", glossed as working together to build together (Warta Oriental, 10 August 2025). Nabalu News reported the same theme for 2024, translated as "Bersama Maju" (progress together).

Read more about the community on our Murut people guide.

Where is Pesta Kalimaran held?

The 2024 and 2025 state-level editions were held in Kemabong, in the Tenom area of Sabah's interior: at the Kemabong town square in 2024 and the Kemabong sub-district square in 2025. The 2019 edition was held at the Murut Cultural Centre in Tenom. The venue for 2026 is to be confirmed.

Tenom is the terminus of Sabah's Gorge Line, which runs 49 km from Beaufort through the Padas Gorge. See our Sabah train guide before planning a trip by rail.

What happens at Pesta Kalimaran?

The 19th edition in 2025 drew about 20,000 visitors in person and about 17,000 more watching live online on TV Sabah. Its programme included:

• A handicraft exhibition and competition.
• Traditional sports: tug of war, slingshot and blowpipe.
• Traditional costume design contests for men and women.
• A Lundayeh song competition and Butitin Kalimaran contests for adults and children.
• The Kalimaran arts and culture parade, with 17 contingents and more than 700 participants.

Source: Warta Oriental, 10 August 2025. In 2024 the festival also showed Murut dances and traditional songs such as pusaloh and lolondoi (Nabalu News).

Frequently asked questions