Bali - Reopening for International Visitors

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Bali to partially re-open to travellers from select countries from October 14.2021

A government minister in Indonesia has confirmed the island of Bali will partially re-open to arrivals from certain countries. However, the list does not currently include Australia, a significant tourism market for Indonesia prior to the pandemic. According to an AFP report, Luhut Panjaitan says that from October 14. 2021, Ngurah Rai International Airport will open for arrivals from:

• South Korea
• China
• Japan
• United Arab Emirates
• Dubai
• New Zealand.

“Ngurah Rai Airport in Bali will open internationally on October 14, as long as it meets the provisions and requirements regarding quarantine, Covid-19 tests, and the readiness of the Task Force.”

The minister has not confirmed if the opening will apply to tourists or only people with a residence permit. However, all arrivals will need to show proof of a quarantine hotel booking for at least 8 days, which they will have to pay for themselves. There has been no confirmation of what other restrictions or criteria might apply.

Indonesia is emerging from a devastating wave of the highly-contagious Delta variant, which at one point in July, saw the country report over 56,000 new infections in 1 day. The worst-hit areas were plunged into lockdown, with the closure of all non-essential businesses and limits on movement.

The island of Bali, normally a huge tourist draw, has been devastated by the pandemic, with its normally thriving tourism industry in tatters. However, infection rates are now falling as the government accelerates its vaccine rollout, and restrictions are being eased, with cinemas, offices, and shopping centres re-opening at reduced capacity and on-site learning resuming at some schools. Yesterday, Indonesia reported 88 Covid-related deaths and 922 new infections.

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Bali governor pushes for reduction in mandatory quarantine



The governor of the resort island of Bali is urging the Indonesian government to reduce quarantine time for international arrivals. TTR Weekly reports that Bali currently has a 2-night quarantine in effect, but Governor I Wayan Koster says it’s putting tourists off coming. He wants to see it reduced to 1 night, until international visitors get the results of their Covid-19 test, when he says they should then be free to explore other tourist parts of the island.

Thailand recently reduced quarantine to just 1 night for vaccinated arrivals from 63 approved countries. Yesterday, Cambodia liftedall quarantine requirements for vaccinated international visitors. Bali’s governor doesn’t see the need for any quarantine if arrivals are fully vaccinated and test negative for Covid-19, but is prepared to compromise.

“As long as our visitors are fully vaccinated and test negative upon their arrival, I don’t think quarantine is still necessary. But I’ll propose to the central government to reduce the quarantine time to just 1 day.”

Koster also addressed 15 ambassador candidates at the governor’s office, urging them to promote Bali as a tourism destination to help the economy to recover.

“I kindly ask all the new ambassadors to help us promote our tourism as part of the effort to revive Bali’s tourism as well as the economy.”

According to the TTR Weekly report, the Indonesian government has previously said it expects around 20,000 foreign arrivals to visit Bali this month, most of them coming from Japan on Garuda flights.

In related news, the provincial government has warned Bali nightclubs to refrain from hosting large-scale parties during the island’s partial lockdown. Hotels planning to hold weddings and other large events have also been denied permission to do so.

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Indonesia lifts ban on international arrivals from high risk countries

Indonesia scrapped its travel ban list and now all foreign arrivals can enter the Southeast Asian country. A seven day isolation period is still required for all travellers from overseas.

The 14 countries on Indonesia’s travel ban list due to high Covid-19 infection rates have all been removed, according to the country’s Covid-19 Task Force. The measure went into effect last week, allowing those from South Africa and the UK to travel to the archipelago country.

He noted that cross-border movements remain with limits in place due to the requirement to preserve stability, including the national economic recovery. The relaxing measures come as Indonesia prepares for various international events this year, including the MotoGP championship in March and the G-20 Summit in November, both of which are expected to attract more international visitors.

Early this week, Indonesia’s daily Covid-19 case reached a three-month high, as the Omicron strain expanded across the country and local transmissions outnumbered imported cases, although hospitalisation rates and fatalities remained low due to increased vaccination coverage.

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Bali to reopen fully vaccinated travellers from Feb 04.2022 | 5 Day Quarantine Required



Fully vaxxed and dreaming of white beaches? Starting from today, Indonesia welcomes you with a reduced quarantine of 5 days. You might even be able to book a direct flight to Bali this month, if you’re traveling from select countries. For those with a single jab, the duration of quarantine is reduced from 10 to 7 days.

Ministry of Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment announced on Monday its decision to cut the quarantine time based on the 3 day incubation period of Omicron, currently the dominant variant in the country, as it hopes to kickstart a suffocated tourism industry, particularly on the island of Bali. The beloved tropical island paradise saw a record low of just 45 international tourists in 2021, down from millions in previous years.

Throughout the pandemic, Indonesia has required a strict 10 day quarantine for all international travellers, regardless of vaccination status, in addition to a $300 business visa and special Covid insurance. Last year the island of Bali remained closed for much of the year while its airport was shut down from January to October. It reopened for tourism from select countries in October, including international flights, but saw only domestic flights, mostly from Jakarta.

Indonesia’s closed borders and harsh travel restrictions effectively shut down its tourism industry, which normally accounts for more than half of the county’s GDP. Last year, Bali saw only more than a few dozen intrepid travellers between January and October last year. All 45 of them arrived on private yachts, the CNN reported. Traditionally, the tropical island paradise’s economy has relied on tourism, welcoming 1.6 million foreign tourists in 2020, already significant decline after a pre-pandemic wave of 6.2 million tourists in 2019.

Indonesia’s ease of quarantine restrictions follows similar moves from neighboring countries across Southeast Asia, which have been making bold moves to reopen their borders since last year — with varying success. Bali welcomed its first direct flight on Thursday, with exactly six tourists from Tokyo.

Singapore Airlines plans to resume direct flights to Bali in mid-February, as a travel bubble between the two nations looks to increase tourism both ways. Meanwhile, Thailand is planning similar travel bubbles with its own border buddies, as Southeast Asian countries band together to declare Covid-19 endemic and end the prolonged state of pandemic-induced travel depression in 2022.

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Indonesia tightens restrictions as Covid-19 cases rise in the capital

As the spread of the Omicron variant in Indonesia has led to a spike in cases in Jakarta, officials are tightening restrictions in the capital, Bali, Bandung in West Java, and Yogyakarta in Central Java.

Reports initially said foreign tourists would be barred from entering Jakarta, but the transport minister released a statement today saying that tourists with the proper documentation can still fly into Jakarta and Bali airports, as well as Batam and Tanjung Pinang in the Riau Islands near Singapore.

In the capital, with more than 36,000 Covid-19 infections were reported on Sunday and a 63% bed occupancy rate in hospitals in the capital, up from 45% last month.

Under the new rules, supermarkets, malls, and restaurants will be allowed to operate at 60% capacity, but houses of worship will be limited to 50% capacity, he said during a live-streamed news conference.

Officials have cautioned that the Omicron’s spike in cases may not peak until late February. Three provinces, including Jakarta, Banten, and Bali, had already surpassed infection rates observed during the Delta variant’s wave in July, but hospitalizations had remained low, according to Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin.

“Don’t panic when you see an increase in cases”.

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Bali reopens to international tourists after almost 2 years

On February 16.2022, Bali reopened to foreign tourists with its first international flight in almost two years. The flight was with Singapore airlines, with 109 foreign travellers, and 47 Indonesians. The foreign travellers are required to quarantine in a designated hotel for three to seven days. There are 27 designated hotels for them to choose from. The governor said he hopes in March, foreigners won’t have to quarantine as long as they test negative on departure and arrival. One Australian vacationer said the reopening was a “great sign” for tourism.

The country is opening its borders even though it reported a record number of Covid-19 cases on Tuesday. The government’s Covid-19 task force said the number of daily infections rose above 57,000. Indonesia now has the most Covid-19 cases in all of Southeast Asia, followed by Vietnam and then the Philippines. The new spread in Indonesia has been caused by the Omicron variant. On Tuesday, the death toll in the past 28 days was 1,006. Indonesia’s total number of Covid-19 infections since the pandemic began is 4,966,046. The total number of deaths from Covid-19 is 145,622.

The Bali Hotel and Restaurant Association chair told Channel News Asia that Bali is using strict protocols.

“We are aware of the increasing and fluctuating Omicron variant cases, but as long as we are strictly implementing health protocols, we should not be worried.”

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Bali to trial a quarantine-free entry scheme in March 2022

On a trial basis, Indonesia’s resort island Bali will start allowing foreign travellers to enter without undergoing a quarantine. A senior minister says the new travel policy will start March 14, or sooner, depending on the Covid-19 situation in Bali. The Indonesian government will extend the travel scheme across the country if the trial is successful.

To enter Bali from overseas, foreign travellers must be fully vaccinated against the coronavirus and show proof of payment for at least four nights at a hotel, according to Coordinating Minister for Maritime and Investment Affairs Luhut Binsar Panjaita.

Just like Thailand’s Test & Go entry scheme, foreign travellers entering Bali must undergo an RT-PCR test upon arrival and stay at a hotel while they wait for their results. Once test results come back negative for the virus, travellers can do activities on the island, but “under health protocols,” the official says. Travellers must undergo another PCR test on the third day of their stay.