Boosting Tourist Visits to Bali

Boosting Foreign Tourist Visits to Bali, Synchronizing Demand and Supply

BALI - The Bali Regional Tourism Promotion Agency (BPPD) held a working meeting to discuss accelerating the recovery of the tourism sector in Bali, which was slumped by the Covid-19 pandemic with the Indonesian Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy. The meeting which was held at the Bank Indonesia Representative office in Bali Province (20/6/2022) was attended by the Indonesian Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno.

Head of BPPD Bali Prof. Tjokorda Oka Artha Ardhana Sukawati said this working meeting was an important part of efforts to optimize the role of BPPD Bali in implementing promotional programs in tourism within the framework of the revival of Bali.

Furthermore, the Deputy Governor of Bali also hopes that the government will develop relevant policies to increase the volume of tourist visits to the Island of the Gods. He then mentioned that the carrying capacity of the number of flights has not been synchronized with the interest of tourists, which has caused the level of visits not to be maximized. "Don't let the promotion go all-out but the number of visits will not increase much because the number of flights is not supported," he said in a press release from the Bali Provincial Government.

Regarding efforts to restore the tourism sector, Menparekraf Sandiaga Uno mentioned two things that need serious attention, namely supply and demand management. He mentioned that the two components must receive serious attention from the Bali BPPD and other components involved in the tourism sector. On the other hand, Sandiaga also informed that until now Bali is still an extraordinary tourist destination. "From the results of my road show, so far Bali is still the top off mind in a number of countries," he said.

Thus, Menparekraf said that there must be a balance between demand and supply. When there is a demand for tourist visits, it must also be supported by the number of flights to Bali. "So, our crucial task right now is to check supply and demand management. The solution is that together we try to encourage the addition of the number of flights to Bali, including seat capacity," he explained.

Regarding this problem, he has spoken with the Minister of Transportation regarding the possibility of modifying the agreement with a number of airlines so that they can increase the number of flights to Bali. Through this effort, he hopes that the target of 1.5 million foreign tourist visits in 2022 can be exceeded.

In another part, Sandiaga Uno also mentioned breakthroughs in the recovery of the tourism sector apart from those that have been implemented so far, such as the quarantine-free policy and the granting of Visa On Arrival (VoA) for foreign tourists who come from a number of countries. The efforts to restore the tourism sector which have been carried out in stages have begun to produce significant results.

From existing data, from January to June 2022, the number of foreign and domestic tourist visits to Bali reached 728,703 people. Meanwhile, the average number of visits by domestic tourists is 23,300 people, while the average number of visits by foreign tourists is 11,400 people.

Specifically related to promotions, the Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy said that the digital concept is a more effective choice at this time.