Bali’s governor told the current Australian Ambassador to Indonesia, Penny Williams, that Australian tourists will be able to enter the island as soon as the central government allows it.
This announcement is of great importance considering that Australia is not part of the 19 countries Indonesia has reopened to.
According to the governor, Covid-19 transmission in Bali has been controlled effectively given that 88 percent of the population, including foreign nationals, have been fully vaccinated.
His data is backed up by the European Union’s Council, which on Nov. 18, recommended its Member States to scrap all entry restrictions for all arrivals from Indonesia “as soon as possible.”
Also, with only 400 daily cases in a country of 273.5 million people, Indonesia is now one of the safest destinations to visit worldwide, according to the American Centers for Disease Control and Prevention CDC.
The Australian government is still very selective with the countries it will be establishing Vaccinated Travel Lanes (VTL) with. However, Williams thinks both governments could reach an agreement if Bali eases restrictions a bit further.
“I hope 2022 will be better and flights can be opened again because the mobility of citizens in the two countries is very important to maintain the relationship that has been developed so far,” she added.
Meanwhile, the Governor of Bali insisted on the positive situation the island is experiencing.
“We are working hard to deal with COVID-19. The daily new cases have been sloping and stable at single digits… Bali has entered an encouraging phase. Those who die are also much lower and more often at 0,” he said.
But Bali still needs a few adjustments to succeed in its reopening. Perhaps expanding its limited list of allowed visitors would help.
Hoteliers, restaurant owners, and the Balinese people are more than ready to start receiving tourists. Everything suggests that with a couple more changes, tourists would be also ready to come back.