Bali Airport Staff Encouraged To Give Better Service To Tourists

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Indonesia’s Minister for Tourism and Creative Economies, Sandiaga Uno, calls on airport staff to consistently give top service to Bali Airport passengers.

His comments come as I Gusti Ngurah Rai International was listed amongst the world’s worst by a top passenger rights company. 

Speaking from Jakarta, Minister Uno emphasized the need for all hospitality workers, especially those at airports and borders, to give a good first impression of the county to tourists. He said, “They get their first impression at the airport and we must ensure that at our airports we apply typical Indonesian hospitality.”

The Minister addressed concerns raised by the results of the AirHelp survey, which listed Bali Airport amongst the ten worst airports in the world in terms of performance, customer service, and food and shops.

He confirmed that he had read the survey results, which also included damning scores for Syamsudddin Noor Airport in Banjarmasin and Halim Perdanakusuma Airport in Jakarta. He noted that the results will be used as evaluation material for his department. 

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Minster Uno confirmed that the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economies has been carrying out regular training for airport staff, including immigration and porter staff, both of whom have an important public-facing role in airport operations. 

Minster Uno said airport staff must consciously focus on sharing good hospitality with tourists wherever they are from.

He added it is important “so that these tourists don’t give up on coming to Indonesia, they come and get more quality and sustainable tourism so that business opportunities open up, the economy improves and jobs are available for the community.”

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He continued, “Most of the tourists are not only looking at natural beauty, but how they feel in Indonesia, this service is a top priority; hospitality.”

With all this in mind, Minister Uno called on airports across the country to afford good service and a commitment to creating a pleasant atmosphere for tourists at all times. 

He concluded, “The most important thing is that the three main doors for tourists to Indonesia are Ngurah Rai Bali, Soekarno Hatta, and many also enter through the doors of Batam and Riau Islands. So those are the main points to improve hospitality and service quality.”

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Minister Uno’s constructive comments after the survey feedback will be well received by tourists, though not all officials felt the results of the survey were fair.

The Vice President of PT Angkasa Pura, which is the state-owned enterprise responsible for the day-to-day management of Bali Airport, shared his doubts about the results. 

Rahadin Yugisworo told the press in a written statement,”AP I, as the airport manager, doubts the results of the survey. Because it is not accompanied by an explanation of the survey parameters in question.”

He noted that Bali Airport received a series of awards in 2023 for customer service, environmental commitments, and operations. 

In the coming year, tourists landing in Bali will be afforded a new and more advanced immigration process.

Airport teams are in the process of installing a new set of autogates across both the arrivals and departure terminals.

These autogates will be available for tourists using the e-Visa on Arrival process.

This will enable tourists to travel through the airport more quickly and efficiently, reducing queue times and freeing up immigration staff to support more passengers. 

Over the coming year, tourists will be encouraged to apply for the e-Visa on Arrival online, though the visa on arrival will still be available for tourists from 97 countries.

Earlier in December Minister Uno suggested that visa-free travel could return for Bali’s top tourists though no official changes have been made just yet.