11 Interesting Facts about Garuda Wisnu Kencana (GWK) Cultural Park Bali

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The building of Garuda Wisnu Kencana (GWK) Cultural Park is officially done. There are many interesting facts that you should know about this icon of Balinese tourism. Bali officially owns a new tourism icon, namely Garuda Wisnu Kencana (GWK) Cultural Park. The building process was finished on September 2018 as it was publicly announced by the President of the Indonesian Republic, Joko Widodo. Garuda Wisnu Kencana is located in Ungasan Village, South Kuta District, Badung Region; it is easily accessible from any side of the island. Moreover, this tourist attraction has many unique and interesting facts to explore. Here are 11 facts that you should know about Garuda Wisnu Kencana.

It takes 28 years for the building to complete

The first interesting fact about GWK Cultural Park Bali is related to its long history of construction that needs 28 years to finish. The first concept of this monument was initiated by the Minister of Tourism, Joop Ave, in 1990. The building process was then postponed in 1998 due to the monetary crisis. It was finally finished in 2018.

It is taller than the Liberty Statue

The finished monument of GWK looks astonishingly grand. It reaches the height of 120 meters, taller than the Liberty Stature which is ‘only’ 93 meters. At the worldly level, there are only three monuments or statues that are taller than GWK. Those are Statue of Unity (182 meters), Spring Temple Buddha (153 meters), and Laykyun Setkyar (130 meters).

It was built on the former site of lime-scale mine

GWK was built on the former site of unauthorised lime mine. The site itself is quite large; it is 67 hectares in area. The area of the land was badly damaged, making it unable to produces plants or trees.

It comprises 30 floors on the inside

The magnificent statue is not the only grand feature that GWK offers. When visiting this attraction, you can also get inside to explore this 30-story building. However, access for visitors is only limited to the 23rd floor.

The building process is made manually

Another interesting fact about GWK is related to its building process; all of them were done manually. Nyoman Nuarta, along with other employers, sculpted the stones and turned it into the grand statue that you can see today. The sculpture was made by using traditional equipment with gavel and hammer. To make the process quicker, Nyoman Nuarta also invited some foreign sculptors.

Except for the hands, all parts of the statue was remade

You might assume that the statue of GWK is a continuing project of the old one. However, this assumption is not entirely true. Almost all parts of the statue were remade and rebuilt by Nyoman Nuarta. The only part that maintains the old construction is the statue’s hands. For this reason, you can notice a slightly different in terms of the statue’s colours and patterns.

It is made separately with 754 modules

The building process of the GWK statue was made separately. In total, you will find 754 modules with the weight of 2,900 ton. All of them were made in Bandung before they were sent to Bali. To connect and construct those modules, the builders used 170 thousand of bolts and 21 thousands of steels.

Misdirected Position

The position setting of the GWK statue that portrays Vishnu Deity is misdirected. The statue was meant to be built facing the north side, not south. This position is based on the belief in Balinese Hinduism, which confirms that the north is the representative direction of Vishnu.

The building process spends around Rp1.3 trillion

The building of GWK Cultural Park is considered a mega project which spent a large amount of money. After the project discontinued for several years, Nyoman Nuarta received an investment from PT Alam Sutera Realty Tbk. The budget is surprisingly grand, costing around Rp1.3 trillion.

It involves 1.000 workers

As a mega project, the building of GWK needs a lot of workers, so it involves 1.000 builders and employers. Four hundred of them worked in the art studio of Nyoman Nuarta, which is located in Bandung. Meanwhile, the rest—600 people—finished their works in Bali. 

The building process has zero accident record

What makes GWK more interesting is the building process that went smooth and saves. There is no accident recorded during the process. Nyoman Nuarta also claimed that this mega project has zero accident record. GWK Bali offers more than a magnificent statue and building. There are many interesting things you can do when visiting this tourist attraction. For instance, the site is often used for a pre-wedding photo session. The entrance ticket is also affordable. You can book an online ticket via Traveloka for only Rp76.000*.

GWK Bali Entrance Ticket

• GWK Explorer (for Indonesians and KITAS holders): Rp76.000
• GWK Explorer (for foreign tourists): Rp116.250

*price may change at any time