Great news for world music fans as the most awaited music festival in Malaysia, the Rainforest World Music Festival (RWMF), is back once again, celebrating its 25th anniversary as a hybrid event for the first time since the beginning of the music festival in 1998.
This year, the music festival themed “Legendary Rainforest Celebration”, being held from 17-19 June 2022 will take on a hybrid format, with the physical concert taking place at Sarawak Cultural Village, while viewers can also livestream it from their homes via rwmf.net.
Rainforest World Music Festival 2022
Intending to bring the world back together with music, RWMF will welcome a host of international performers from Canada, India, the USA, Finland, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Singapore, Japan, Australia, Mexico, New Zealand, China, Bhutan and Seoul.
Locally, Majlis Seni Sarawak will be featuring something unique by mixing traditional Sarawakian music with international flavours opening the three-day show in a first-time musical collaboration with Sarawak Tourism Board.

The Rainforest World Music Festival 2022 will also feature the sounds and rhythms of Sarawak, showcasing musical elements from the diverse ethnic groups of Sarawak through exhilarating performances that will elevate Sarawak’s unique tribal flavours onto an international pedestal.
The announcement of Sarawak’s highly anticipated and iconic event was made today by Datuk Seri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah, the Minister for Tourism, Creative Industries and Performing Arts, along with Puan Sharzede Datu Haji Salleh Askor, Chief Executive Officer of Sarawak Tourism Board and Capt Nasaruddin A. Bakar, Chief Operating Officer of MASWings representing the Malaysia Aviation Group.
During his speech, Datuk Seri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah, the Minister for Tourism, Creative Industries and Performing Arts, said:
“I’m very proud of how far our homegrown product has come. From around 100 spectators for its first-ever concert back in 1998 to becoming the first hybrid festival of its kind in Malaysia.
Concertgoers who miss the feel of the physical concert can come together in mutual appreciation of world music, and those around the world can enjoy world music live from the comfort of their own homes.”
Chief Executive Officer of Sarawak Tourism Board, Puan Sharzede Datu Haji Salleh Askor said,
“Every year we strive to make Rainforest World Music Festival better than the year before. Last year’s Virtual Experience gave us invaluable feedback on how we could work towards combining the best of both worlds – physical and the digital – to create RWMF’s first hybrid edition this year.
We hope that creating this unique precedent for the 25th edition of the festival will become a keystone for the next 25 years for the festival, bridging the past with the future and sustaining and reinventing our musical heritage and its traditions for many years to come.”

Rainforest World Music Festival 2022 Ticket Information
It was also announced that there would be an Early Bird ticket sale starting 18th April 2022 for physical and virtual concerts. Those interested can go to rwmf.net to grab tickets in the different categories;
- Adult 1-Day Pass (RM 150)
- Adult 3-Day Pass (RM375)
- Child 1-Day Pass (RM80)
- Child 3-Day Pass (RM155)
- 1-Day Family Package Pass- 2 Adults and 2 Children (400)

Rainforest World Music Festival 2022 Airline Partner
Malaysia Airlines has been named the official airline partner of the Rainforest World Music Festival 2022. The collaboration, which is also a continuation of the Malaysia Aviation Group (MAG)’s partnership with STB, will see Malaysia Airlines, Firefly, and Journify offering unbeatable deals comprising flights and a 3-day event pass to drive visitors to drive footfall to Sarawak.
Speaking on behalf of Malaysia Aviation Group, Chief Operating Officer of MASWings, Captain Nasaruddin A Bakar, said;
“We are honoured to be appointed as the official carrier for the highly anticipated 25th edition of Rainforest World Music Festival, to bring in travellers from all over the world to Land of the Hornbills.
This collaboration marks great progress in the Malaysia Aviation Group and Sarawak Tourism Board partnership and will see both brands ramping up our marketing efforts in promoting Malaysia as a whole since the border’s reopening and Sarawak as a safe, destination of choice for 2022.
We believe this collaboration is vital to rebuild the tourism industry and stimulate domestic and international travelling and will help support the value chain of industry players such as travel agents, product owners, local artisans and business partners.
Malaysia Airlines operates 70 times weekly flights from Kuala Lumpur to Kuching in addition to 14 times direct weekly flights starting 25 April 2022 from Penang also available via Firefly jet operations, further reinforces our commitment to providing greater and seamless connectivity to and from Sarawak.
At the same time, we continue to build travellers’ confidence by maintaining high levels of safety and hygiene standards on board our flights to make it a memorable travel experience for all to Fly Confidently, Fly Malaysia, and fly beyond.”

Rainforest World Music Festival Earlybird Flight Ticket Promotion
Malaysia Airlines and Firefly will have early bird deals that offer customers up to 15% and 10% off discounts on flights on selected Malaysia Airlines, including from the United Kingdom, Australia, and some ASEAN destinations. Firefly’s recently launched jet operations from Penang to Sarawak.
The sales start from 25 April 2022 until 14 May 2022 for travels from 1 June until 30 June on Malaysia Airlines and 13 June 2022 until 30 Jun 2022 on Firefly.
These tickets are available exclusively for those purchasing plus the 3-day pass through the airline’s respective websites, and they are required to include a unique promo code to enjoy the great discounts on air tickets.
Customers will also have the option to purchase “value-for-flights” deals, exclusively available on Journify that offers MHflypass plus a 3-day pass to RWMF event at a fixed attractive price, giving them complete flexibility convenience, and control over their spending for the flights.
Early birds can grab an MHFlypass as low as RM1774 (RM1366+375) for Zone 2 and RM1974 (RM1599+375) for Zone 3 from 1 June until 30 June 2022, with flights valid for one year.
MHFlypass offers two convenient options for passengers travelling for RMWF based on their destination origin, allowing them to choose the zone that matches their travel needs best.
Zone 2 offers passengers the opportunity to fly to Kuala Lumpur from destinations in Sabah and Sarawak, alongside flights between destinations within Peninsular Malaysia, with a connection through Kuala Lumpur. Meanwhile, Zone 3 allows passengers to fly from Sabah and Sarawak to Peninsular Malaysia destinations, connecting to Kuala Lumpur.
Rainforest World Music Festival Date & Information
- Date: 17-19 June 2022
- Location: Sarawak Cultural Village, Santubong, Kuching
- Website: RWMF
You can also get more information from the Sarawak Tourism Board (STB), as they are the key promoter for the state of Sarawak, Malaysia Borneo.
STB is a winner of the Asia Pacific Excellence Awards 2016 by the Asia-Pacific Association of Communications Directors (APACD) and has received the ASEAN PR Excellence Award 2015 Gold Award.
The Rainforest World Music Festival is a five-time Top 25 Best International Festivals recognised by Songlines World Music Magazine (2011 – 2015) and won the Golden City Gate 2019 five-star award for the Rainforest World Music Festival’s (RWMF) promotional video.

Conclusion
It has been two whole years since the last RWMF 2019, and many have been waiting for the moment when they can visit Sarawak for this year’s festival.
When the Covid 19 pandemic took the world by storm, the Rainforest World Music Festival 2020 was postponed because no one knew what the outcome of the pandemic would be like.
While Sarawak Tourism Board organised a virtual Rainforest World Music Festival 2021, it was held online through live streaming from the official website and Facebook page.
This time around, for Rainforest World Music Festival 2022, there will be a limitation for daily visitors, up to 4,000 per day. However, it will surely be something to look forward to, especially visiting Sarawak.