Bali Shares Strategy To Keep Tourists Traveling Easily This Christmas Week

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With over one million new people on the island of Bali, officials across the province have ramped up their security and traffic control operations.

The Bali Regional Police have shared their strategy for helping make sure Bali stays up and running this Christmas week. 

Chief Inspector General Ida Bagus Kade Putra Narendra held a press conference on Niti Mandala Field in Denpasar. He outlined how security personnel will coordinate across the islands and how traffic officers will keep the island moving. 

Chief Inspector General Narendra said, “We have anticipated congestion pints. We anticipate traffic engineering in tourist areas in the Kuta and North Kuta areas. These include Atlas [Beach Fest, Canggu] and Petitenget [Seminyak Beach] in the direction of Berawa Beach, Finns Beach Club, and the other direction is toward Uluwatu.”

@dimitrabesiri Christmas in Bali … now we are in Nusa penida island !!! Its amazing 🥹✨❤️ #pramananaturanusapenida #nusapenida #bali #tropicalisland #fyp #foryou #tiktok #viral ♬ Sleigh Ride – Lindsey Stirling

North Kuta encompasses the resorts of Seminyak and Canggu. Both of these destinations are busy and vibey right now.

Hotels, resorts, and guesthouses are averaging a 70-80% occupancy rate with many of the top accommodations selling out over the festive season.

Canggu and Seminyak are the top nightlife destinations in Bali, alongside Uluwatu, and there are plenty of festive dinners, parties, and celebrations happening across the coastal hotspots. 

He added “We have coordinated this Christmas and New Year, everything is clear and ready to be a collaborative effort in the field. We have also followed up on this at the Bali Regional Police together across sectors in coordination meetings with preparations from each institution in Bali.”

@eastern_exposure The Government need to do something about this. #traffic #balitraffic #cometobali #kutabali #instagramvsreality ♬ This Is a Work of Art (Sketchy) – Dubskie

The security operation, with the code name Operation Lilin Agung 2023, has deployed 1,600 additional police officers on Bali’s streets and a further 2,700 cross-sector personnel from the civil service, army, Tourism Task Force, and immigration teams. 

Chief Inspector General Narendra also spoke about the security status of Bali province at this time. He confirmed that Bali remains classified as safe on the national threats assessment, but that he has ordered all officers on duty to pay the utmost attention to the situation on the ground that support and security operations can be executed with swift precision if necessary. 

@goodtimestravel2022 LONGEST Traffic Jam Ever in BALI!! #bali #balitraffic #trafficjam #balitrafficjam #fyp #viral #carcrash #caraccident #carwreck ♬ Beep Beep – Nicki Minaj

Narendra noted that the huge influx of arrivals on the island is no small task to manage from a security perspective.

He explained, “This increase in community mobility is certainly a challenge for all of us, in maintaining conduciveness during the Christmas and New Year celebrations.”

Adding “We will carry out security with a more humane approach, but remain firm.”

“We don’t want any disturbance to security and order during the Nataru celebrations.”

Even with more officers on the streets and a coordinated strategy in place, traffic congestion is inevitable.

Many tourists are planning on leaving the main island of Bali between Christmas and New Year to go and chill out on the Nusa Islands and Gili Islands. 

Tourists who have not yet booked their fast boat or ferry tickets to Nusa Penida, Nusa Ceningan, Nusa Lembongan, Gili T, Gili Meno, Gili Air, and Lombok are advised to book transfers as soon as possible.

Demand for boat transfers has surged over 40% in the days before Christmas and is set to rise again. 

With tens of thousands of tourists heading to the outlying islands for limited boat crossings, travelers are urged to leave more than enough time to travel to Sanur Habor and Padang Bai Harbour.

Officials have confirmed that more staff have been deployed at the Banjar Nyuh Harbour in Nusa Penida to help tourists upon arrival and on the outbound journey back to Bali.

Traffic officers have also been deployed on the Nusa Penida side to ensure that traffic flows easily from the harbor to the island’s main resort areas so that tourists can kick back and enjoy the festive island vibes as soon as possible.