Bali Care / Bali Tourism Blog

As the peak season across Christmas and New Year holiday period, Bali fell into low season. Whist it is a normal cycle that starting mid of January Bali tourism enters the lowest business pace, this particular low season attracts significant worries of many tourism business players in Bali, especially related to the global financial crisis with the worst impact affect the main tourist originating countries.

There are many logics explaining the cycle actually. “Everybody have just got back home from a Christmas – New Year holidays, so it just does not make any sense to expect the to come now for another holiday,” a simple explanation threw by Gede, a car rental Bali driver who had rare chance to meet his little baby back home as his schedule was completely full from early December through mid of January.

Working for a holiday rental company focusing on up market private accommodation service, Gede was exclusively assigned to families spending their holiday in Seminyak villas. “A number of different clients, but back to back stay period has completely filled up my schedule,” he continued.

With regard to the slow business in the last few weeks Gede did not show any negative expression. “It’s time for me to enjoy my earning from the peak period and spend enough time for my family,” he said. He is quite confident that there is nothing for him to worry about as the holiday rental company has started filling up his schedule starting March onward. The mid season will start as soon as the rainy season ends.

Gede is one of thousands of tour drivers in Bali, a small nut in a huge vehicle of Bali tourism industry. But I guess we have to learn from his optimism. Bali has been seeing worse situation, all of which got through peacefully and ended up in an even stronger business.

Whilst holiday rental has just started its popularity within the last few years, just like the whole Bali tourism industry, holiday rental business has been seeing 2008 as the most successful year in the history. Regardless global financial crisis affecting the main feeding countries of Bali tourism such as USA and Europe, the holiday season at the closing of 2008 has been pleasingly lucrative. Villa rental agencies were busy looking for available villa for their desperate clients wanting to spend their holiday in Bali villas. Demands have been by far exceeded available supply.

As the peak holiday season expired and the last client depart, worries started to arose. A perfect combination of low season and impact of global financial crisis came as a potential threat. “We have to be very careful in controlling our spending as we have to ensure that we have enough to run our business during the slow period,” an owner of a prominent holiday rental agency in Bali said. “We have been seeing Bali tourism survived worse situation, so there is nothing to worry about. Just business as usual,” another one expressed a more optimistic opinion.

I personally have not that much of worries. With price ranging from $500 to over $3,000 per night, target market of villa rental is wealthy business owners and investors. Crisis may force them t reallocate their portfolio or even significantly cut capitalization of their assets, but it will not affect their lifestyle. If Bill Gates lost 5 billion dollars, will he sell his private jet and fly commercial flight instead? Definitely not. There are a lot of executives and professionals are loosing their job and therefore will no longer afford to spend a holiday, but those people are in $100 - $200 resort hotels’ market range.

Nevertheless, I carefully watch the situation in my own company. It is correct that we do not have many in-house clients in January and probably February as well. But those months are in low season anyway. However bookings for the coming months do not show any evidence of financial crisis. From income point of view, January 2009 has been a good month. I believe that other agents were experiencing similar situation.

Finally Mr. Mangku Pastika, Bali Governor, prevented pretension of PT Anantara that want to develop adrift restaurant at Buyan Lake, Bedugul. Mr. Pastika said if investor would like to buy Buyan, they
also should buy his head.

For your information, an investor named PT Anantara would like to develop any tourism spot at Buyan lake, such as adrift restaurant and adrift stage for art performance. Water at Buyan lake has getting contraction, and the investor will take benefit from that to develop some tourism spot. But some Balinese component believe that Buyan lake is one of sacred place that sacred to Balinese, and also from some research said Buyan Lake is fountain head. That’s why they prevent any exploration at Buyan Lake.

Buyan Lake is one of the biggest lake in Bali, surround by tropical forest make Buyan Lake is favorite place to have outbound activity such as trekking and camping.

We hope Bali Governor always consist to prevent any exploration at Buyan lake by investor that only take profit.

Let we keep holiness of our environment!

The elite tourism area in Nusa Dua has got big problem. In this luxury tourism area in Bali has got problem with trash where it’s not yet fixed completely. Bad smell of trash can we find in edge of
Siligita street where trash has been a routine view when you passed trough that street.

The fact of trash has been classic problem for tourism area of Nusa Dua also accrued by Mr. Made Mandra , Head of BTDC Nusa Dua, and also he said that elite tourism area will not has a sense if it doesn’t support by neighborhood of BTDC.

Mr. Made Mandra also hope the local government will aware for this problem and take solution for trash problem around Siligita Street, where he didn’t pry up tax of hotel and restaurant.

In other side, Coca Cola - the famous soft drink producer in world has collaborated with Reef Check Indonesia foundation to create special program to promote clean live as a life style especially for cleaning coastal area. This program has named Coca cola for Bali Coastal Clean Up, has been running since July until December 2008. From this activity, they have success to raise around 1 ton of trash from coastal of Kuta, Sanur, and Nusa Lembongan.

It’s important to keep our surroundings still clean, and also important to emerge awareness of cleanliness from young. Tourism also depend on cleanliness of our surroundings.

Bali will get more visitors in order to traditional Chinese New Year in the last January 2009, as
reported by The Jakarta Post. Most travelers are from China and Hongkong for Chinese New Year holiday, where estimated visitor per day by the end of January is 6000 per day and the normal days is 5000 tourist per day.

Mr. Al Purwa (Head of ASITA Bali) said that Chinese New Year holiday would increase occupancy of hotels in Bali, and the occupancy itself will be 80 percent. Most Chinese and Hongkong tourist will be stay around two until three days during Chinese New Year holiday as Mr. Purwa Said.

Another optimism also come from Mr. Jeffrey Wibisono (General Manager of Villa Mahapala), where Villa Mahapala has been booked by mostly guest from Korea and Chinese. He hoped that occupancy will keep increasing in the coming weeks.

Bali still to be one of the most favorite travel destination for Chinese tourist to celebrate Chinese New Year away from their home. But we hope the weather will be friendly (at least no flood again) as we known Chinese New Year is identical with rain.

Gong Xi Fa cai!