Malioboro Street in Yogyakarta Fully Closed Today Due to Cultural Procession for Sultan HB X's 80th Birthday
The Malioboro area will be fully closed today, Thursday, 2 April 2026, in conjunction with a cultural procession for the 80th birthday commemoration of Sri Sultan Hamengku Buwono X.
This closure is to support the event, which is expected to be attended by thousands of village heads and officials from across the Special Region of Yogyakarta (DIY). The Head of the DIY Transportation Department, Chrestina Erni Widyastuti, stated that traffic flow will be closed from the northern side to the southern area of Malioboro.
“Later, traffic from the northern side will be closed from Teteg to the south, also in Malioboro; we will close the side streets as many people will be walking towards the Keraton, even though the initial gathering point is at Kilometre Zero; we have already closed from the northern side,” said Erni when confirmed on Wednesday (1/4/2026).
In addition to Malioboro, traffic from the east on Senopati Street and access from Kilometre Zero to the west towards PKU Muhammadiyah Hospital will also be closed. The closure is scheduled from 06:00 WIB until around 12:00 WIB.
“Jalan Ibu Ruswo will also be closed by us. However, the Plengkung area can still be used for traffic flow. We ask the public to adapt,” said Erni.
This cultural procession is part of the mangayubagya celebration or expression of gratitude for Sultan HB X’s birthday, initiated by the Nayantaka association of village heads across DIY. Nayantaka Chairman, Gandang, explained that the event will be attended by around 10,000 to 12,000 people consisting of village heads and kelurahan officials throughout DIY who will take part in the procession.
“The estimate is that each kelurahan has 20 representatives, roughly 10,000 to 12,000 for us village heads,” said Gandang.
The procession will start from Kilometre Zero towards the Keraton Ngayogyakarta Hadiningrat. Participants are required to wear traditional Javanese clothing, while the general public is invited to join wearing batik.
The general public who wish to participate are also welcome. “Please do. But considering the parking capacity, we are limiting it so as not to overuse public facilities for too long, which could disrupt comfort,” he said.
In the procession, the village heads and officials will also carry agricultural produce from their respective areas, called Gelondong Pangarem-arem. This produce will later be presented to the Sultan as a form of respect and gratitude.
“(The agricultural produce to be brought -ed) is based on the potential in each area; if Kulon Progo has durian, bring durian; those near the coast bring coconuts, please; the important thing is not to burden,” he explained.