Bali to close airport during Nyepi

Bali to close airport during Nyepi

KUTA, Bali: The island resort of Bali will close the Ngurah Rai
International Airport for 25 hours when it commemorates Nyepi
(the Hindu Day of Silence) on March 21.

"The airport will be closed starting 5 a.m. on Sunday (March
21) until 6 a.m. the following day," state airport management
company PT Perum Angkasa Pura's manager at Ngurah Rai Airport,
IGM Dhordy, said here on Thursday.

Bali has been closing the airport every Nyepi since 2000, but
the airport management have continued to serve aircraft making
stopovers, he said.

Starting this year, however, the airport would not allow
aircraft to make stopovers, he added.

"But it does not mean that operations will totally stop. Air
traffic control will continue to operate," he said.

Some 28 aircraft from both domestic and foreign airlines fly
to Bali each day, he said.

He also said he would make sure that this information was
conveyed to tourism operators, including travel bureaus and
hotels. -- Antara