Travelers fly to Asian cities during Idul Fitri<\/p>\n
Leony Aurora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
As more people make use of the Idul Fitri holiday as a time to
\nrelax, airlines are seeing an increase in passengers, not only to
\ntraditional domestic destinations but also to favorite Asian
\ncities.<\/p>\n
Garuda Indonesia Airlines spokesman Pudjobroto said on
\nWednesday that flights -- both domestic and international to
\nAsian destinations -- were between 95 percent and 100 percent
\nfull in the period of Nov. 11 to Nov. 15.<\/p>\n
\"Flights to cities like Singapore, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, and
\nGuangzhou in China, were fully booked -- even the extra flights,\"
\nsaid Pudjobroto.<\/p>\n
\"We also had to add more flights to Osaka, Japan.\"<\/p>\n
Most white-collar workers were given extra days off after Idul
\nFitri, which fell on Nov. 14, and need to come back to work on
\nNov. 22.<\/p>\n
\"I think the long holiday, as well as improved living
\nstandards and the economy in Indonesia, has helped to spur
\noverseas travel,\" said Pudjobroto.<\/p>\n
A shift in domestic travel was also seen this year. Unlike
\nprevious years, this season many people traveled on Idul Fitri
\nand the day after.<\/p>\n
From the initial estimate of 42,000 additional seats for this
\nseason for international and domestic flights, Garuda has had to
\nadd 22,000 more seats to meet the abundant demand by adding extra
\nflights and using bigger planes.<\/p>\n
Budget carrier Lion Air also saw an increase in passengers.
\n\"However, the number of passengers was similar to the same season
\nlast year,\" said spokesman Hasyim Arsal Alhabsi.<\/p>\n
The most popular domestic destinations include Surabaya,
\nYogyakarta, Balikpapan, and Palembang. Lion Air boosted the
\ncapacity of its flights to these destinations to 30 percent
\nhigher than usual.<\/p>\n
The number of people traveling to Singapore has also increased
\nwith flights that are usually 70 percent full, fully booked, said
\nHasyim.<\/p>\n
\"People will start returning on Nov. 18, four days after Idul
\nFitri,\" he said, adding that the number of passengers would
\nreturn to normal after Nov. 21.<\/p>\n
As for the following holidays -- Christmas and New Year --
\nHasyim said people had started to reserve seats, particularly on
\nflights to Denpasar, for dates between Dec. 20 and Jan. 3.<\/p>\n
Unlike foreigners, Indonesians tend to postpone making their
\nreservations until the last moment. \"From the business point of
\nview, it is difficult for us to predict (the number of
\npassengers),\" said Hasyim. \"But we are already used to it.\"<\/p>\n
Pudjobroto concurred, saying that Garuda tried to apply a
\nticketing time limit to prevent customers from changing their
\nflights.<\/p>\n
\"We check the reservations regularly to anticipate changes of
\nplans,\" he said.<\/p>\n
For Christmas and New Year, Garuda has prepared 20,000
\nadditional seats. \"If there is a demand, we can still add more
\nseats,\" said Pudjobroto.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/travelers-fly-to-asian-cities-during-idul-fitri-1447893297",
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