Indonesia’s Bali is reopening to tourists but not Australia, Singapore
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Bali’s holiday island was reopened Thursday to visitors from selected countries in what the Indonesian authorities called “baby steps”, a way to resume international travel.
Indonesia has closed its borders for foreign visitors 18 months back
Vaccinated tourists from 19 countries — including China, India, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand, as well as parts of Western Europe and the Arabian Gulf — can now travel to Bali and Indonesia’s Riau Islands. All travelers are subject to Covid-19 and a 5-day quarantine.
These plans will be a significant milestone in the country’s efforts to attract tourism from Southeast Asia, which has been severely restricted by travel restrictions. Yet several major feeder markets for foreign tourism — including Bali’s No. 1 market of Australia, and neighboring Singapore — were omitted from the list.
Talks continue with Australia and Singapore
CNBC spoke with Sandiaga Uno from Indonesia, the Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy. He said Thursday that current policies are based on scientific evidence and guidelines by an expert panel. The list will be extended once additional data is available.
It shouldn’t be “stop and go”.
Sandiaga Uno
The minister for tourism and creativity in Indonesia
Uno stated that “We want it to not be stop-and-go but rather smooth, incremental basis.” “Street Signs.”
“[With]Singapore and Australia are definitely continuing to communicate,” he stated, adding that they are focused on making sure that reopening is done “first on a secure and safe basis.”
Concurring with destinations that are quarantine-free
As neighboring countries, Indonesia has partially reopened. including Thailand Singapore parts of VietnamWe are happy to accept vaccinated visitors from selected countries.
Indonesia — burned by a lackadaisical approach to quarantines which led to a spike in Covid-19 cases in July — is taking a more cautious approach. They are also rational. It is preparing to host the G-20 Summit on Bali 2022.
Uno stated, “It will purely be scientific. Making sure that this will be smooth in the next 18 month as we host G20 Events here.”
Seminyak is an island on Bali, Indonesia.
AFP | AFP | Getty Images
Uno indicated that the quarantines will be updated over time. New safety measures are being implemented by the islands, including hotel certifications, boosters, and vaccinations.
He said, “We’re making sure Bali has the highest priority in getting everyone vaccinated…in the first quarter of next year.”
Officials hope the new measures will revive Indonesia’s tourism sector, which is responsible for about 4% of Indonesia’s gross domestic products. Uno said that reaching pre-pandemic numbers will take some time. In the meantime, visitors may opt to stay longer but less frequently in the future.
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