Jakarta - With extensive natural scenery and rich cultural heritage, Bali remains an attractive destination for overseas tourists as reflected by the continued increase in the number of foreign travelers to the resort island.
The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) said 224,695 foreign tourists visited Bali via Ngurah Rai International Airport in June, a 12.68 percent increase from the 199,400 in May and a 12.07 percent increase from the 200,503 people in the same period last year.
In the first six months, 1.17 million foreign tourists arrived in Bali through Ngurah Rai, a 9.52 percent increase from the 1.07 million in the same period last year.
"Bali remains the top draw among Indonesian tourist destinations," BPS head Rusman Heriawan told a press conference last week.
The BPS said a total of 613,422 foreign tourists visited Indonesia in June, an 11.41 percent increase from 550,600 people in the same period last year.
There were 3.38 million foreign tourists to the country in the first half of the year, a 14 percent increase from the 2.97 million in the same period last year.
"*The increase is* quite significant. I hope we can have higher tourist numbers in the coming months," Rusman said.
He said foreign tourist arrivals in June were 2.23 percent higher than the previous month because of seasonal factors. "We entered peak tourist season in June," he said.
Apart from the significant increase in overseas passengers at Ngurah Rai, Bali also ranked first in the length of foreign visitors' stay.
In June, tourists spent an average of 3.44 days in Bali, followed by West Nusa Tenggara (2.72 days) and North Sulawesi (2.14 days).
The BPS said occupancy rates at star-rated hotels in 17 provinces reached a average of 53.37 percent in June, a slight increase on the 52.64 percent rate in the same period last year.
"It has exceeded break even. Star-rated hotels normally break even when they achieve at least 40 percent occupancy. But they will be hit by higher costs if they maintain at less than 40 percent *room occupancy*," Rusman said.
Despite the positive trend in foreign tourist numbers, reduced airport capacity may hurt services for international passengers, says a senior official.
The president director of state-owned airport operator PT Angkasa Pura I, Tommy Soetomo, said the company had to accelerate Ngurah Rai airport's capacity to better accommodate increased passenger numbers.
"We are planning a Rp 2 trillion renovation of Ngurah Rai's international terminal," he said last Thursday in Kuta, Bali.
He said Ngurah Rai airport could not handle the drastic increase in arrivals, especially following the advent of low-cost carriers.
Ngurah Rai airport's new international terminal will occupy a 126,000 square meters, far larger than the current 68,000-square-meter terminal.
The old international terminal will be used for domestic flights. The current domestic terminal now occupies 14,000 square meters. (ebf)
Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com
