Flights fully booked until first week of January<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): City residents planning to celebrate Christmas
\nand the once-in-a-lifetime millennium rollover abroad should be
\nready to face the unpleasant fact that all flights from Jakarta
\nto several local and international destinations are fully booked.<\/p>\n
Interviewed separately on Tuesday and Wednesday, airline and
\ntravel agent operators admitted that seats on flights bound for
\noverseas and local popular holiday destinations, such as Bali and
\nLombok, were fully reserved beginning this weekend until the
\nfirst week of January 2000.<\/p>\n
According to a reservation staff member at Singapore Airlines,
\nYati, all the airline's flights from Jakarta to several
\ndestinations abroad were fully booked starting from this
\nSaturday.<\/p>\n
\"Seats are only available after Jan. 11,\" she said.<\/p>\n
The same strong business, a sure sign of economic recovery in
\nthe country, is also enjoyed at the Qantas Airways office here.<\/p>\n
\"All seats are booked for our flights beginning from Dec. 17,\"
\nRatna, a local staffer at Qantas, said.<\/p>\n
In anticipation of a possible influx of holidaymakers, flag
\ncarrier Garuda Indonesia Airways and Merpati Nusantara Airlines
\nwill provide extra flights to certain local destinations and also
\nto Singapore.<\/p>\n
The same policy will also be carried out by the two airlines
\nduring Idul Fitri, when Muslims celebrate the end of Ramadhan,
\nwhich may fall on Jan. 9.<\/p>\n
Garuda, for example, will begin operating its extra flights,
\neffective from Dec. 24 to Jan. 4, with 5,570 total extra seats on
\naircraft serving six routes, consisting of those flying to
\nYogyakarta, Surakarta, Palembang, Pekanbaru, Denpasar and
\nSingapore.<\/p>\n
Separately, head of public relations at Merpati Nusantara,
\nImam Turidy, said his firm would lay on 68 extra flights from
\nJakarta to Medan, Denpasar and Makassar.<\/p>\n
\"Almost all of the extra flights will be effective from Dec.
\n21 to Jan. 14,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Some travel agents have said that it would be almost
\nimpossible for travelers to make new reservations in the days
\nleading up to the holidays.<\/p>\n
The manager of Bayu Buana tours and travel's Kelapa Gading
\nbranch in East Jakarta, Haryanto, said that overseas flights had
\nbeen fully booked since Dec. 20.<\/p>\n
\"Most of the travelers are spending their holidays celebrating
\nNew Year's Eve at popular tourist destinations, such as those in
\nAsia, Europe and Australia,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Tour groups<\/p>\n
His office is handling 12 outbound tour groups for this year's
\nannual festive season.<\/p>\n
According to Haryanto, those who were well-off preferred to
\ncelebrate this year's unforgettable New Year's Eve overseas,
\nsince the momentous event coincides with the Muslim fasting month
\nof Ramadhan.<\/p>\n
For them, enjoying the jovial night in Jakarta could cause
\nsome upset among those who were fasting, he said.<\/p>\n
Nike, a ticketing staffer at the Anta tours and travel agency,
\nsaid his company found that most of the annual travelers were
\nleaving Jakarta until Idul Fitri.<\/p>\n
A ticketing employee at the Atlantic tours and travel agency,
\nTheresia, said the business was much different from the same
\nperiod last year when the country was badly hit by the economic
\ncrisis.<\/p>\n
\"This year, we have full reservations. I think it is likely to
\ncover last year's poor business,\" she said.<\/p>\n
According to Theresia, the only available flights at her firm
\nwere for those on Dec. 31, which has been widely dubbed as the
\nmost crucial time for the possible impact of the millennium, or
\nY2K, bug.<\/p>\n
\"There have been no reservations for that date at our office.
\nI think people have decided to avoid Dec. 31, whereas most
\nairlines have rescheduled their flights for that day,\" she said.<\/p>\n
The airline industry is one of sectors most likely to be
\naffected by the millennium bug which occur when computers fail to
\nread 2000 as the next year and may revert back to 1900 causing
\nwidespread havoc.<\/p>\n
Due to the problem, several foreign airlines operating in
\nIndonesia have rescheduled or canceled their flights on New
\nYear's Eve.<\/p>\n
Other travel agents also reported a low demand for flights
\nduring the millennium rollover.<\/p>\n
Hotels<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the management at several hotels revealed their
\noptimism that occupancy rates would increase during the changing
\nof the millennium.<\/p>\n
\"I think there are a lot of people, such as bankers, who can't
\nhave a holiday on that day because they have to be on alert for
\nany possible impact of the Y2K problem.<\/p>\n
\"I hope such people will stay at hotels to celebrate New
\nYear's Eve,\" said Rully Rachman, director of sales at the
\nShangri-La hotel in Central Jakarta .<\/p>\n
He said more than 40 percent of the hotel's 668 rooms had
\nalready been booked for the special evening.<\/p>\n
\"I'm optimistic that the occupancy rate will later reach 60
\npercent\".<\/p>\n
Nur'aini B Prapdanu, the public relations manager at Hotel
\nHorison at the Ancol dreamland park in North Jakarta, said the
\noccupancy rate for millennium eve celebrations had reached about
\n80 percent of the hotel's total of 440 rooms.<\/p>\n
A senior public relations officer at the Hilton hotel in
\nCentral Jakarta said that about 450 of the hotel's 1,100 rooms
\nhad been reserved. (ind)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/flights-fully-booked-until-first-week-of-january-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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