Business buzzing again in battered Bali

Business buzzing again in battered Bali

Tomi Soetjipto, Reuters/Bali

Sun-bathing topless on Bali's famed Kuta beach, Joanna Lee seems
unfazed by the sight of giggling Indonesian tourist policemen
buzzing by on a golf cart.

"We're happy that tourism in Bali is back because our job is
more fun now," says police officer I Wayan Karna, laughing and
joking with a colleague about sun-loving travellers.

The two policemen then briefly exchange small-talk with a
group of Japanese tourists on the crowded beach where hawkers
selling sunglasses, tattoos, and animal-horn cigarette holders
mingle with bikini-clad women and bare-chested wannabe surfers.

"But write this," Karna says as he continues his afternoon
patrol, "we're doing this job seriously because we're here to
protect the tourists".

As for Joanna, a shop assistant from Newcastle in Australia,
security seems her least concern on her frequent visits to the
island she loves for the beaches and the "fun atmosphere".

"It's quite obvious really, the beaches are great ... people
are just so friendly," said Lee, now clad in a loose shirt with
oversized rectangular sunglasses sitting on her nose.
"Once you come here you always want to come back, no matter
what."

Travellers flocking back

Indeed, more than two years after Islamic militants bombed
packed night clubs in Kuta, -- killing 202 people, most of them
foreign tourists -- travellers are finally flocking back to the
island.

Dubbed the "Island of Gods" for its myriad Hindu temples and
never-ending religious rituals, Bali escaped the effects of the
Dec. 26 Indian Ocean tsunami that struck many tourist
destinations in southeast Asia.

While tourism in areas such as Sri Lanka and Phuket in
Thailand suffered major blows, Bali has enjoyed a revival. The
island lies more than a thousand miles away from Aceh, the area
of Indonesia hit hardest by the tsunami.

Overseas arrivals on the temple-studded island have increased
more than 6 percent in the first six months of this year to
around 700,000 from the same period last year. That figure broke
the island's all-time high set in 2001.

In May leading credit card company Visa International reported
a hefty jump in travellers' spending on the island and described
Bali as a bright spot in Asia's generally gloomy tourist
industry.

"Bali's bright future is already here now and is looking
brighter than ever," Bali tourism chief Gede Nurjaya told
Reuters.

"We did have initial fears of a setback after the tsunami but
as it turns out there have been no significant cancellations."

High-end goes upward

Away from the hustle and bustle and neon lights of Kuta, Bali
has enjoyed an upscale makeover, with the mushrooming of
luxurious villas and high-class spas on secluded beaches and in
the misty hills.

Italian jewelry house Bulgari is to open its second resort --
and the first outside its home country -- next year on the cliff
peninsula of Uluwatu.

Last year, the Conrad hotel group opened a resort in Nusa Dua
and COMO unveiled its US$4,400-a-night boutique residence in the
island's picturesque Ayung valley.

Fancy restaurants and posh nightclubs have all emerged, adding
glamour to the once sedate scene.

"The whole thing has become a lot more sophisticated over the
last few years," says David Wilson, general manager at the five-
star Ritz-Carlton.

"We see that Bali is more (demanding of) luxury accommodation,
whether it is luxury villas or luxury hotels," he told Reuters.

"2005 is looking very strong ... enough that we'll be showing
a growth of 30 percent in revenue. Most of it is being driven by
the growth of the luxury segment," he said.

A high-profile case in which a young Australian woman,
Schapelle Corby, was jailed for smuggling in marijuana, brought
talk of a Bali boycott but to little effect.

A more serious hindrance to an even more rapid recovery is the
fact that some countries, such as the United States and
Australia, still warn against travel to Indonesia because of the
threat of terrorist attacks.

Security remains a top priority for authorities in Bali, which
draws most of its foreign tourists from Japan and Australia.

In a recent interview, Bali police chief I Made Pastika said
police were on alert for possible attacks because some key
players in the 2002 bombings were still at large.

But French tourist Alexander Rybosad, taking pictures of
locals performing a Hindu ritual on one of the quieter stretches
of Kuta beach, said security and fears of bombings were not an
issue for him.

"I'm not afraid. I think it's possible that it could happen
anywhere, but I hope it doesn't happen in your country again,"
said the avid surfer, who has been staying in Bali for two
months.

REUTERS

GetRTR 3.00 -- JUL 10, 2005 08:40:59