Tourists looking to travel to the beautiful oasis that is Bali got a big boost of news as Singapore Airlines announced that the airline will recommence its daily Singapore-Bali flights starting Feb. 16.
According to Alvin Seah, Singapore Airlines’ general manager for Indonesia, direct flights to the Indonesian island will resume and provide a much-needed boost to Bali’s tourism industry. In a statement, he stated, “The resumption of the daily flights to Bali represents Singapore Airlines’ long-term commitment to help grow Indonesia’s tourism industry.”
While there have been no official statements from the Indonesian government in terms of travel requirements, one can glean it will be part of a quarantine-free travel bubble. This is based on senior minister Luhut Pandjaitan comments last week asking airlines to re-establish their direct routes from Singapore and Bali.
Although no international flights have landed in Ngurah Rai Airport since Bali reopened to international tourists in October 2021, this news will surely start to change that trend. This has been due to Indonesia’s strict travel restrictions.
As of January 7, 2022, anyone arriving in Indonesia must undertake a mandatory 7-day quarantine at facilities designated by the Indonesian government. That had recently changed as Bali plans to reopen to tourists from all countries with 3-5 days quarantine on February 4.
The island, whose economy is predominantly reliant on the tourism industry, welcomed 6 million tourists in 2019 and only 45 international tourists in 2021.
Indonesia has reported 23 infections per 100K people in the last 7 days and to date there have been 4,353,370 infections and 144,320 coronavirus-related deaths reported since the pandemic began.