0 Tourism stakeholders hope for brighter year

Tourism stakeholders hope that Bali will see a brighter year of tourism this year, as the island will have better infrastructure and will host the Asia-Pasific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit that is expected to cause multiplier effects on the sector. They also expect that Bali will remain safe and convenient for tourists during this political year, when, in May, the island will hold its gubernatorial election. I Gusti Ngurah Rai Suryawijaya, deputy chairman of the Bali chapter of the Indonesian Hotels and Restaurants Association (PHRI), said that he predicted there would be a 10 percent increase in the number of tourists arriving on the island. 

“For 2013, we are optimistic that Bali would be able to attract around 3.3 million tourists because the island remains the favorite destination in Asia,” he told Bali Daily on Wednesday. Besides, infrastructure improvements, including the expansion of Ngurah Rai International Airport and the construction of a toll road, would help increase tourism in 2013, he said. “The APEC Summit, which will be attended by thousands of people, will also have a multiplier effect on our tourism. And if this event is successful, it could attract more tourists in the following months,” he added. Bali has achieved its target of 2.8 million foreign tourist arrivals for 2012. 

According to data released by the Central Statistics Agency on Wednesday, foreign tourist arrivals during 2012 reached 2,888,864 people, a rise of 9 percent compared to the 2.7 million in 2011. For 2013, Suryawijaya also hoped that Bali’s situation could remain conducive for tourism, as the island would hold a gubernatorial election in May. “Bali should remain secure and convenient for tourists. We hope there will be no security disturbances amid the changing political situation.” Ida Bagus Gede Sidharta Putra, chairman of PHRI for Denpasar, said that overall, the condition of tourism throughout 2012 had been good, but many things still needed to be improved for brighter conditions this year. 

He shared similar comments, saying that the island had seen a lower occupancy rate during the year-end holiday season, as average occupancy was estimated to be only around 80 percent, a condition that was very different from 2011. He said the decrease was caused by, among others, the economic crisis in Europe, which reduced the number of tourists from some European countries by 20 to 25 percent. The crisis has also affected the length of stay of the tourists, from three weeks to around eight to nine days. 

“Even our loyal market, Australia, saw a decrease of around 20 to 25 percent, as many Australian tourists now prefer to go to destinations further away, like Thailand or the US, in line with the stronger exchange rate for Australian dollars,” Sidharta said. He said the mushrooming of new hotels in Denpasar and surrounding areas had also affected occupancy rates. “For this year, we hope that tourism development will take the environmental carrying capacity into account, as well as the balance between supply and demand. The government should be stricter in issuing licenses.” 

Regarding the target for tourist arrivals, he said: “Quantity is not the most important thing, we should emphasize quality. We hope we would be able to attract higher quality tourists.” He stressed that all the factors affecting tourists’ safety and convenience should be improved, including public facilities and garbage disposal. “We also hope that the situation in Bali will remain stable during the gubernatorial election, as tourism is very fragile and easily affected by security issues.” He said he had received many questions about the communal clashes involving mass organizations that occurred recently. He hoped there would be no similar incidents happening in the future.

source : bali daily