Bali Tourism Minister Sets Target Of 1.5 Million International Visitors In 2022

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Indonesia’s Minister for Tourism and Creative Economies, Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno, has announced tourism targets for the second half of 2022. Minister Uno is committed to ensuring that Bali’s tourism economy bounces back as soon as possible by utilizing entrepreneurial spirit and streamlining promotional budgets. 

Speaking at a press conference on Monday 20th June, Minister Uno announced that his target for international tourists by the end of 2022 is 1.5 million. He has also created a domestic tourism target of 7 million.

He shared how he hoped that diversifying what Bali has to offer, with a special focus on large international events, will help promote a greater influx of international tourists. ‘’We will reach this [target] with approaches that become our programs, such as sports tourism, MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Exhibitions), international events, and tourist villages’. 

Through these MICE events, the Ministry for Tourism and Creative Economies will work in partnership with micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) across Bali. These partnerships will be most important during the G20 Summit that is being held in Bali in November 2022.

The Ministry will be working with over 400 MSMEs and 40 hotels in the Nusa Dua area surrounding the Bali International Convention Centre to ensure that world leaders, delegates, and the world’s media are catered for during the political important event.

Minister Uno stated during the press conference how his ministry hopes that delegations from international events such as the G20 will stay longer before and after the events to explore the Island of the Gods. He hopes that these longer, high profile, and high-spending visitors will help boost the income of micro, small and medium enterprises and in turn the island as a whole.

The Minister confirmed in greater detail than in previous press statements how the Bali tourism sector is bouncing back after the height of the pandemic. ‘”South Bali has begun to show a revival. For West and North Bali, we will initiate several events. Later, there will be a cruise at the end of the year and will dock in North Bali. In addition, we will hold an International Conference on Ecotourism next month at the West Bali National Park’.

Ecotourism is a significant niche for Bali and one that the sector is keen to capitalize on. The West Bali National Park is one of the island’s few remaining untouched natural wonders. Due to its location in the far west of the island, the National Park is rarely visited by the average holidaymaker.

Although nature travelers make up a small proportion of Bali’s tourism market, showcasing the natural wonders the island has to offer attracts a whole new type of traveler to Bali and diversifies the experiences available to returning visitors.

A steady shift towards ecotourism within the mass tourism market would bring plenty of benefits to the Bali tourism sector enabling the island to conserve and preserve culture and nature while ensuring profits are being made and tourists are having incredible experiences.

Bali is already well on its way to hitting Minster Uno’s targets. In May Bali’s Ngurah Rai Airport welcomed over one million arrivals. A total of 1,006,663 passengers have arrived across 7,002 flights in May. Of these million arrivals, 772,116 people were welcomed into the domestic terminal building. International arrivals increased by 107% from April 2022 to May 2022 and show no sign of slowing down. 

As Bali prepares for a successful peak season, Bali airport has worked with international airlines to increase flight services. Minister Uno confirmed that the economy has begun its revival but that there is a long way to go. The government has set out clear and achievable targets with strategies to match. Since borders reopened in February 2022 the tourism sector has been making steady and sustained progress.