152,224 Travellers Leave Bali, Gilimanuk Port Congested

As of seven days before Eid 2026, at least 152,224 holiday travellers had been recorded leaving Bali aboard ferry vessels bound for Java, causing congestion at Gilimanuk Port. Data from PT ASDP Indonesia Ferry (State Enterprise) transport command centre shows this figure represents an accumulated passenger flow from ten days before to seven days before Eid 2026 on the Gilimanuk–Ketapang route. In addition to passengers, a total of 48,877 vehicles crossed from Bali to Java during this period.

“The increase in vehicle movement occurred due to high public enthusiasm and logistics vehicles crossing from Bali to Java ahead of the closure of ferry services during Nyepi,” stated an official on Sunday, 15 March 2026.

The fleet expansion was undertaken to manage the surging passenger flow at Gilimanuk Port, which continued to increase approaching Eid 2026. Bayu Kusumo Nugroho, Coordinator of the Ketapang Ferry Port Service Unit in Banyuwangi under the Class II Port Authority (BPTD) for East Java Province, said the passenger flow on the Ketapang–Gilimanuk route required special handling through increased fleet capacity.

“Under normal conditions, 28 ferry vessels operate, increased to 30 units. However, because passenger flow continues to surge today, we have increased it further to 35 ships,” he said in Banyuwangi on Saturday, 15 March 2026.

This meant the five additional vessels were prioritised for loading at Gilimanuk Port to manage passenger queues, whilst at Ketapang Port they only handled unloading operations. “So these five large ferry vessels are prioritised to dock at Gilimanuk Port for loading, whilst at Ketapang Port they only handle unloading,” he explained.