Bali attack has slight effect on Jakarta hotels

Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Hoteliers said on Friday the Bali bombings slightly affected the hotel industry here and that a recovery depended on the progress of the investigation into the terrorist attack.

"Of course, it affected the business with many guests canceling their reservations. But the good news is that there has been a decline in the number of canceled reservations," said Hana Hoed, public relations manager at the Gran Melia Hotel in South Jakarta.

Hana said the Bali carnage had thus far resulted in a slight decline of between 2 percent and 3 percent in guest numbers, while her hotel's occupancy rate hovered at about 50 percent in normal conditions.

According to Hana, foreigners canceling their reservations came from both Asian and European countries.

Ratna Sjamsiar Idris of the Mulia Senayan Hotel in South Jakarta also said there had not been a significant number of cancellations at her hotel.

"There has been impact (from the Bali tragedy), however there has not been a massive exodus from the hotel," she said.

Both Hana and Ratna expressed similar concerns over security in the country, which if not improved could damage the long-term health of the hotel industry.

"The situation is quite similar to the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attack on the WTC twin towers in the U.S.," said Hana.

While the impact of the Sept. 11 terrorist attack in the U.S. lasted for about three months, Hana predicted the impact of Bali could last even longer. She hoped that by the first quarter of next year things would return to normal.

Hana said the time needed to recover would depend in large part on the government's progress in locating and arresting those responsible for the Bali attack.

Security has become the major concern for many in the tourist industry here. The issue of the possible presence of the al-Qaeda terrorist network here has profound implications for the tourist industry not only in Indonesia, but also in Southeast Asia.

Hotels and cafes along Jl. Jaksa in Central Jakarta, a favorite haunt of backpackers, and restaurants and cafes on Jl. Kemang in South Jakarta, which are frequented by expatriates, have reportedly suffered a pinch from the Bali disaster.

Meanwhile, Hanifah, a chief market analyst at the Jakarta Tourism Office, said his office had yet to conclude how much the Bali bombing would affect business here.

"At the end of September foreign tourist arrivals in Jakarta hovered at over than 120,000, a slight increase from 115,000 in August," Hanifah said.

The numbers of overseas tourists visiting the capital last year declined slightly to 1,187,385, from 1,187,776 the previous year.

Data from the Office of the State Minister of Tourism and Culture shows that about 5.15 million foreign tourists visited Indonesia last year, short of the targeted 5.4 million arrivals.