The word is out, Bali is back as world class tourist mecca

By Rob Goodfellow

WOLLONGONG, Australia (JP): After three years of uncertainty following the Asian economic meltdown, the Indonesian general election and the East Timor crisis, Bali is back in vogue as a world class tourist destination.

Enquiries by Australian-based IRIS Research have verified the trend. In an interview this week, IRIS Director Martin O'Shannessy, confirmed a 30 percent increase in Australian tourists bound for Bali, with the trend suggesting continued strong growth.

O'Shannessy said that there was an observable decline in departures from Australia to Indonesia between 1998 and early 2000. "The seasonal lift in departures normally expected after February did not take place during 1999 and this was followed by lower than usual monthly departures for about nine months. The data is now suggesting that a steep lift in departures took place in the first part of this year".

But what exactly is behind this reversal of fortunes? Experts can't agree on whether holidaymakers are being lured back by the island's tropical charms or driven to holiday in Bali by the upheaval in Fiji.

What is known, however, is that the political crisis in the South Pacific has seen tourist numbers fall in that region from over 4,200 to below 400 per day since the May 19 Fiji coup. This has resulted in lost revenue estimated at around US$150 million and hospitality industry redundancies put at 20,000 jobs. The much smaller Solomon Islands tourism sector completely disintegrated last month when ethnic warfare erupted in the capital Honiara.

"The crisis in the Pacific has been an amazing catalyst for driving Australian tourists back to Bali," said Kristal Taylor, the national advertising manager for Australia's largest travel retailer, The Fight Center.

"The main reason for this is that our consultants are confident of recommending Bali as a safe and economical holiday destination," she said.

"Having traveled to Bali myself last month I am personally very confident of recommending the island."

Martin O'Shannessy similarly suggested that anecdotal data from the travel industry pointed to a switch between Fiji and other Asia-Pacific destinations from May onwards and that this would boost the trend observed in the first quarter of 2000.

"In my opinion, Bali, which receives the vast bulk of Australian departures to Indonesia, appears to have maintained its reputation for friendliness, safety and good value," he said.

Rolf Hubner, general manager and director of operations for Bass Hotels and Resorts Indonesia, confirmed that the last three months had seen a steady increase in business.

Speaking from the Bali Intercontinental Resort on Jimbaran Beach, Hubner said, "I wouldn't credit increased interest in Bali exclusively as the result of problems in the South Pacific.

"The hard work of all those in the industry who have accurately portrayed Bali as a place worth visiting has more to do with it, combined with the excellent leisure and recreation value the island continues to offer," he added.

"Increased activity from all sectors indicates to me that visitors are choosing Bali as a strong preference rather than having to settle for a second best alternative.

"American and European visitors are able to make a distinction between Bali, and the rest of the Asia/Oceania, which, I must concede, has been hit particularly hard by the hostage situation in Malaysia and the Philippines and the political instability in the South Pacific".

Fallout

Normally, the market for the Bali Intercontinental is reported as a mix of 30 percent Japanese, 25 percent from other parts of Asia (including 8 percent Indonesian nationals), 20 percent Europeans, 15 percent Australians, and 10 percent Americans.

"The only 'fallout' we have had from Fiji were two inquiries for international conferences organized out of Australia," Hubner added.

In support of these comments, Kerry Timms, regional spokesperson for Garuda International, confirmed the IRIS figures indicating there had been a significant quarterly increase in Australian tourists using the Indonesian national airline to Bali.

Timms reported a 23 percent increase in direct international flight services to Denpasar, a strong indication that confidence was returning.

Like Rolf Hubner, Kerry Timms played down the "Fiji factor" suggesting, "Bali enjoys a great deal of repeat business. Many hundreds of thousands of international visitors go back to Bali year after year. The best customer is the one you already have.

"Our positive public relations, better in-flight service and our highly competitive fares are mostly responsible for the turn around. There have also been some early exciting results from the work of our Luftanza consultants. This is already generating encouraging 'word of mouth' praise from Garuda travelers".

This was backed up by Kristal Taylor who suggested, "We have been working closely with Garuda International and with our internal wholesaler, Infinity Holidays, to accommodate any Fiji cancellations or to meet this new demand."

"We are delighted with the positive feedback we are getting from our recent Bali clients," Taylor added.

Stability

Clearly there are some difficulties ahead for Bali. International tourism is influenced by a number of factors although, according to research undertaken by O'Shannessy at IRIS, concerns about political stability remain the consumers' most important determining factor in choosing where to take an international holiday.

Another important factor, however, is the reality that Asia is in competition with other holiday destinations. The strong Yen, for instance, has increased Japanese tourist numbers to the U.S. and Europe. On the other hand, U.S. visitors are flooding Europe thanks to the buying power of the Greenback against the Euro.

Consequently the Europeans are holidaying where their currency has the greatest buying power - the southern Mediterranean and the Caribbean.

Indications from the Bali Intercontinental Resort are that Europeans are beginning to rediscover that Bali offers even better exchange-rate value. As IRIS suggests, this is something Australians also appreciate as their currency continues to hold up very well against the Indonesian rupiah.

No matter what is driving the demand, the word is out that after two years of declining tourist numbers, Bali is back.

The writer is based at the University of Wollongong and is an Indonesian cultural consultant to international businesses. He can be contacted at sujoko@ozemail.com.au