Bali's hotels gear up for holiday season

I Wayan Juniartha, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar, Bali

The hotel industry in the country's main resort island, Bali, is expecting a higher occupancy rate during the year-end holiday season, which will be kicked off by a five-day Idul Fitri break next week and holidays for Christmas and New Year.

Most of the island's hotels, whose occupancy rates mostly plunged to below 10 percent following the terrorist attack on the island's entertainment center recently, have started to attract more guests thanks to their campaign to lure more local travelers.

Most hotels in Bali's principal tourist resorts, Kuta, Legian, Nusa Dua and Sanur, have seen a growing number of guests for Idul Fitri or Lebaran next week.

Kuta, the scene of last month's deadly bombing, is reportedly the area that has received the biggest number of confirmed bookings for the season.

"In fact, for Lebaran we are already over-booked by two or three rooms. On December 6, 7 and 8, our estimated occupancy rate will be 100 percent," the Hard Rock Beach Hotel's public relations manager, Dedy Sasmita, said.

Situated next to the famous Kuta beach, the four-star 418-room hotel has received the majority of it's confirmed bookings from domestic vacationers from Jakarta and Surabaya.

"Meanwhile, for Christmas our estimated occupancy rate varies between 58 percent and 60 percent," he said.

To attract more visitors, the hotel had slashed room rates under it's Christmas package, effective from Dec. 20 to Dec. 26, from Rp 950,000 to Rp 750,000 (about US$85) per night. It's the price of its four-night New Year package has also been slashed, from US$199 to $125 per room per night. About 65 percent of the existing rooms have been booked for these events.

"The price of the Christmas and New Year packages are usually higher than the normal room rate, but this year they are cheaper than our US$180 normal room rate," Dedy said.

A significant increase in confirmed bookings has also been confirmed by the Nusa Dua-based five-star, 390-room Nikko Bali. The hotel's estimated occupancy rate during the three days of Lebaran will be 90 percent, way above the current level of around 18 percent.

Over Christmas and the New Year, the hotel expects an occupancy rate of 30 percent.

The Nikko Bali is also offering an interesting rupiah package of Rp 750,000 per room per night to lure domestic travelers. In addition, the hotel has scrapped its initial plan to impose a Rp 100,000 of surcharge for guests staying in the hotel over Lebaran.

"Except for Lebaran, those who stay for a minimum of four nights in the hotel will received a complimentary dinner for two. This offer is valid until December. 26," the hotel's sales manager Sitawati said.

Meanwhile, Sophie Suzylowati, the marketing communications manager of the Legian-based, five-star, 405-room Bali Padma, said that the hotel had only received a slight increase in confirmed bookings for the holiday season.

"It is not something that we are very happy about. Currently, our occupancy rate is seven percent, and it will increase to around 30 percent over Lebaran," she said.

The hotel is offering an attractive year-end three-night package for just Rp 2.7 million per package, with additional benefits including a 20 percent discount on admission to the water park and rafting, 35 percent discount for cruises, and a 50 percent discount for a spa treatment.

Separately, the situation is similar in Sanur, where the four- star, 196-room Raddin is located. The hotel's senior sales executive, Yunita Hidayatullah, expects no big increase in the occupancy rate over the holidays.

She estimated that the occupancy rate would be about 10 percent over Lebaran, while for Christmas and the New Year, the occupancy rate would be lower at six percent.

"The situation is very serious indeed. It seems that the market is not responding to the various packages and price discounts we have been offering," she said.

The chairman of the Bali Hotel and Restaurant Association (PHRI), I Gde Wiratha, stated that whether holiday season vacationers would provide the island's tourist industry with a significant boost was something that remained to be seen.

"The occupancy rate, particularly in Kuta, is getting better, hovering at around 25 percent, and we predict that it will increase to around 50 percent by the end of this year. But, we must remember that there are still many hotels that are suffering from single digit occupancy rates. And, we are still waiting for any huge influx of domestic tourists to materialize," he said.

He also advised the tourist industry against slashing prices. Instead, the industry should be more creative in integrating various new services into their holiday packages.

"Do not slash prices, but provide more services. So for the same price the customers will get a chance to experience more activities and facilities, and, consequently, the package will be more interesting," he said.