Bali Sets Sights on Achieving Unprecedented

Bali finds itself in a challenging race against time, with a mere three months remaining to achieve the ambitious goal set by the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy (Menparkeraf) – to welcome 4.5 million foreign tourists in 2023.

Recent data, as of August, indicated that the cumulative number of foreign tourist visits to Bali reached 3,418,907, leaving a significant gap of 1,081,093 foreign tourists yet to be drawn in.

The Head of the Bali Province Central Statistics Agency (BPS Bali Province), Endang Retno Sri Subiyandani, reported a notable surge of 282.14 percent in foreign tourist visits from January to August 2023 compared to the same period in 2022.

The Australian demographic topped the charts with 844,483 visitors, constituting 24.71 percent of the overall count. Following closely were Indian tourists securing the second spot with 288,430 visits, while British tourists held the third position with 173,051 visits.

Chinese tourists, despite their significant contribution, ranked fourth with 171,634 visits, and the fifth position was claimed by 168,145 US tourists. Among the top ten were also tourists from Singapore, South Korea, France, Malaysia, and Germany.

In August, Bali witnessed a slight decline in foreign tourist visits, totaling 522,141, reflecting a 3.55 percent decrease compared to July’s 541,353 arrivals. Australians remained the most prominent group visiting Bali in August, recording 120,467 visits, followed by tourists from India, France, China, and England.

Despite these statistics, the urgency to revitalize tourism in Bali persists, especially considering that the current room occupancy rate (TPK) for star hotels in August was 60.64 percent, indicating a 2.60-point drop from July. The average duration of guest stays was 2.55 days, while non-star hotels reported an average of 2.22 days.

The Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy aims to rejuvenate Bali’s tourism sector post-Covid-19 by targeting 4.5 million foreign tourists for 2023. Tjokorda Bagus Pemayun, Head of the Bali Tourism Service, expressed confidence in achieving this objective, highlighting the upward trend in foreign tourist arrivals following the downturn induced by the pandemic.