Bali Airport To Invest In Improving Customer Experience

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Bali Airport has something of a hit-or-miss reputation. If you’re passing through at just the right moment, you can race through the airport in the blink of an eye. Arrive at just the wrong moment, and you could be met with queues, cancellations, and, some would say, chaos.

During a spot-check on the airport in October, the Acting Director General of Immigration for Indonesia, Widodo Ekatjahjana, was left furious when he found check-in desks, immigration counters, and other key facilities unstaffed during a busy period. 

Now, InJourney, the state-owned enterprise responsible for aviation and tourism renovations in Indonesia, has pledged to improve customer experience. InJourney’s Director, Dony Oskaria, told reporters that there has to be a shift in focus across the country’s airports. He said, “The airport is the first and last impression of people who come to Indonesia. How do we want guests to be perceived as being at the airport. We will transform the airport by focusing on what was originally operational-based to service”.

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He continued, “Our main task is to change the mindset. Currently, the airport is very operational and not service [focused]. From the toilet to the service in the waiting room, we check customers one by one. The mindset is, for example, at check-in, [is like] ‘I have never thought about how long passengers have to queue to check-in’. Even though there are four check-in desks there, only two are open. We have to have check-in and waiting time parameters”. 

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Oskaria and this teams are on a mission to make Bali Airport more comfortable across the board. Not only will I Gusti Ngurah Rai be made more comfortable and convenient, but there will be a shift towards making the terminals a destination in their own right. Shops, cafes, and restaurants will receive upgrades. All these improvements will ultimately improve customer experiences but also generate much-needed profit for the airport. 

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Oskaria continued, “In terms of aero and non-aero, the airport’s revenue is very different. This is because retail and mixed tenants are not managed properly, so we are making changes. The colors and brands of products at the airport must be regulated. I don’t want people at the airport not to be served well”. Other more subtle changes will also help to rebrand and recalibrate the airport experience for all. These changes will be seen across Indonesia’s international airports, not only in Bali. InJourney will implement new uniforms for all airport staff, and each uniform will reflect the cultural nuances of the region. 

InJourney has announced that I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport will be the pilot project for the new model. Naturally, this is the starting point of choice as the airport received the largest number of international tourist arrivals in the country. Oskaria said, “For six months we worked hard because the moment to show Indonesian hospitality at Ngurah Rai Airport was at the last G20. Then, the second priority for changes was made at Soekarno-Hatta Airport. Changes will be made immediately, the design has been completed, soon”. 

He concluded, “Our hope is that the three other main airports will also be changed soon. This is the priority after I Gusti Ngurah Rai Airport and Soetta, namely Juanda Airport, Hasanuddin Airport, and Kualanamu Airport”.

Juanda Airport, Hasanuddin Airport, and Kualanamu Airport are all entry points for some of Indonesia’s leading cultural tourism destinations. Kualanamu Airport in Medan, Sumatra, is the closest international airport to Lake Toba, one of Tourism Minster Sandiaga Uno’s Super Priory Tourism Destinations. Hasanuddin Airport is a gateway to the diving hotspots of South Sulawesi, while Juanda Airport in Surabaya is the starting point for tourists hiking East Java’s iconic volcanos. 

Upgrades to Bali Airport have been happening throughout this year in the run-up to the G20 Summit. In late October, the airport welcomed the arrival of the Capsule Hotel, offering affordability and convenience for travelers looking to rest up and refresh.