International tourists are flocking to popular holiday destinations in Thailand while Indonesian holiday mecca, Bali, has yet to welcome any new arrivals.
The head of the Indonesian Hotel and Restaurant Association in Denpasar, Ida Bagus Gede Sidharta, blames the situation on the fact that Thailand doesn’t require vaccinated tourists to quarantine.
Indonesia is presently issuing tourist visas to fully vaccinated travellers from 19 different countries, with a three-day mandatory quarantine requirement.
Bali Govenor, Wayan Koster claimed last month that more than 20,000 foreign tourists had booked hotel rooms for November, however the mandatory quarantine requirement prompted the cancellation of almost every booking.
Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport officially reopened on October 14 but has yet to receive any international flights.
While Bali’s Governer has proposed reducing the quarantine period to one day, the Indonesian Government is presently trying to negotiate Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) arrangements with a number of countries, including Australia which, in pre-pandemic times, made up one in four of the island’s holiday makers.
It has just announced a VTL arrangement with neighbouring Malaysia.