G-20 summit highlights Bali’s tourism upswing

Numerous world leaders and other dignitaries are visiting the Indonesian island for the G-20 summit, bringing much-needed attention to the vital tourism industry’s resurgence in the tropical location.

Bali wants the world to know its back. Dozens of world leaders and other dignitaries are traveling to the Indonesian island for the G-20 summit, drawing a welcome spotlight on the revival of the tropical destination’s vital tourism sector.

Tourism is the main source of income on this idyllic “island of the gods,” which is renowned for its tropical beaches, terraced rice paddies, mystical temples, and colorful spiritual offerings. The pandemic hit Bali harder than most places in Indonesia.

Before the pandemic, 6.2 million foreigners arrived in Bali each year. Foreign tourist arrivals dropped to only 1 million in 2020, mostly in the first few months of the year, and then to a few dozen in 2021, according to government data. More than 92,000 people employed in tourism lost their jobs and the average occupancy rate of Bali hotels fell below 20%.

The island reopened to domestic travellers a month later, in August, but in all of 2021 only 51 foreign tourists visited. More than 1.5 million foreign tourists and 3.1 million domestic travelers had visited Bali as of October this year.

Embracing a push toward more sustainable models of tourism, Bali has rolled out a digital nomad visa program, called the “second home visa” and due to take effect in December. It’s also among 20 destinations Airbnb recently announced it was partnering with for remote work, also including places in the Caribbean and the Canary Islands.

Gede Wirata, who had to lay off most of the 4,000 people working in his hotels, restaurants, clubs, and a cruise ship during the worst of the pandemic, found that when it came time to rehire them many had found jobs overseas or in other travel businesses.

“The coronavirus outbreak has hammered the local economy horribly. Bali is the region with the most severe economic contraction,” said Dewa Made Indra, regional secretary of Bali province.

“The reopening of Bali’s airport to international flights and now the thousands coming for the G-20 summit and other related events have raised hopes for a stronger turnaround,” said Dewa._AP news

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