Improving tourist facilities in Bali

I refer to the article in Sunday's edition of The Jakarta Post (May 28, 2000) titled Govt must change tourism policy.

Rita Widiadana's thoughtful article about tourism policy raised many interesting issues which my wife and I, when we were tourists in Bali, discussed during our recent visit. We, on our fourth trip, were enjoying ourselves greatly, but it was obvious that tourist numbers had plunged and that virtually every restaurant, retailer and hotel was struggling to survive. Like Rita, we wondered what was going wrong, what could be done.

Here are some observations:

Health: Your analysis is absolutely correct. This concerns many tourists, some of whom are elderly and have ongoing medical problems.

Security and politics: In my little town on the surfcoast of Australia, nearly everyone has been to Bali. They know it well and understand that events in Sumatra or the Malukus have little bearing on their holiday plans, though they were certainly concerned by the recent violence in Lombok. But for the average tourist, one headline about violence in the tropics is enough to put them off traveling for years. I can't see tourism recovering until Indonesia develops an entirely new regional political structure and ethnic/religious violence is reduced, and that's probably years off. Papua is probably about to begin producing exactly the kind of headlines you don't want.

Cultural tourism: Visits to ancient sites, museums, temples, dance performances and the like have always appealed to a minority, but even that minority is often disappointed. We suggest that the provision of quality information -- brochures, explanatory signs, interpretive centers with informative displays etc., which are almost totally absent.

Most dance performances are great and people really enjoy them, but again the interpretive material is very limited. On the positive side, the best cultural facility I have visited is Neka Museum. We don't have a regional gallery of that standard in Australia (let alone a private one) and Mr. Neka deserves the highest praise. I suggest this is probably the best such site on offer in Bali.

Infrastructure: We were with you in May and the wet season is lingering on, but the roads have deteriorated to an amazing degree in the busy area south and west of Ubud. The government needs to consider building some quality road links as a matter of urgency if it wants tourists to give positive word-of-mouth messages about road travel around Bali.

Australia has limited water resources and few people spread over huge areas, but even tiny country towns generally have good quality piped water. When will Bali, with its ample water supply, give villagers, let alone tourists, drinkable tap water? I find it amazing that tourists are expected to pay quite substantial sums for hotel accommodation and yet need to buy bottled water at a warung to clean their teeth or keep by the bedside overnight.

Restaurants: Undoubtedly many tourists regard eating out as the highlight of their experience. There are many fine restaurants, particularly in Ubud and Kuta.

Finally, visitors are struck by the contrast between the huge investment in hotels, temples and palaces and the poverty of public provisions such as infrastructure, transport and health services. Is this due to the apparent absence of an active Bali-wide administration or village-level local government authority? If a tiny fraction of the money earned by the big tourist operators was invested in the local community, Bali would be a much more attractive destination.

STEVE CRADDOCK

Barwon Heads, Australia