Bali Hotels Boosting Tourism With 50% Post-Pandemic Discounts, Starting At $175 For 5-Star Hotels

Bali Hotels Boosting Tourism With 50% Post-Pandemic Discounts

After an economically grueling two years under coronavirus-related restrictions, Bali recently reopened its borders to tourists. To make the deal even sweeter for international visitors, hotels in the island province of Indonesia have decided to offer significant discounts.

Those in the province’s hotel industry say the deals aren’t just for attracting tourists, though. The discounts also provide a warm welcome to visitors already heading to Bali.

I Gusti Agung Ngurah Rai Suryawijaya, who leads the Indonesia Hotel and Restaurant Association for Badung, stated that numerous 3-star, 4-star, and 5-star hotels are participating in the price reductions.

A list of hotels hasn’t been published but some estimated discount numbers are:

  • 5-star hotels, IDR 2.5-3 million (US$175-200) per night
  • 4-star hotels, IDR2 million (US$140) per night
  • 3-star hotels IDR1-1.5 million (US$70-105) per night

According to Suryawijaya, hotel occupancy rates in the region have risen in response to the island reopening its borders to international travelers. The province also restarted its visa-upon-arrival program.

Suryawijaya expressed enthusiasm about the resumption of tourism, describing the rise in international travelers as “awesome.” He mentioned that hotel occupancy rates are now 25% higher than during the pandemic.

The increase in international flights at Bali’s main airport is another positive sign for the island’s tourism industry. Bali’s economy depended heavily on tourism before the pandemic shut it down.

In 2019, the province saw 6.2 million visitors. In 2020, only 1 million arrived on the island, but the influx stopped immediately once countries worldwide recognized the threat of COVID-19.

Bali Airport has already welcomed 10 international airlines back to the island, and nine more will soon join them.

Recently, 2,000 international tourists have entered Bali every day. That’s still a trickle compared to numbers before the pandemic, but it’s a promising start.

Suryawijaya expects the tourism sector to recover within two years.

On April 10, Indonesia recorded only 29 COVID-19 deaths, a drastic reduction compared to the one-day record of 2,069 last July.