Long-Awaited New Flight Service To Bali Will Launch In December 

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A long-anticipated new direct flight service to Bali has finally been announced. As of the 1st of December 2023 there will be a direct flight connection between India and Bali for the first time.

The flight service will operate between New Delhi and Denpasar and will be operated by the Indian airline Vistara. 

For months, the Bali provincial government has been calling on airlines to increase the number of international flights operating in and out of the island.

Ministers have specifically been calling for direct flights between India and Bali to help promote more cultural tourism and tap into the multi-billion dollar travel industry in India. 

The Times of India has confirmed that Vistara will be operating an Airbus A321LR service from New Delhi to Bali.

Vistara Airlines is a joint business venture between the Tata Group and Singapore Airlines. Tickets are already on sale, with round-trip tickets starting at 39,999 Indian Rupees (USD 480).

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Until now, tourists from India wishing to visit Bali would have to have booked a layover in Jakarta, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, or Singapore.

The direct flight service will completely change the way in which Indian tourists visit the Island of the Gods, and Bali can anticipate seeing a steep increase in the number of visits from India over the next year.

The new flight service will surely be complimented with a huge marketing effort to build upon the growing momentum and demand for travel in Bali by tourists from India. 

The Vistara UK-145 flight service will operate daily from the 1st of December 2023. The outbound flight will depart New Delhi at 12.30 a.m. and land in Denpasar at 11.05 a.m.

The return flight will depart from I Gusti Ngurah Rai International at 12.10 p.m. and arrive in Delhi at 5.45 p.m. 

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In a statement, the CEO of Vistara, Vinod Kannan, said: “India is the second-largest source of foreign tourists to Bali, and with hassle-free visa-on-arrival, Bali remains one of the preferred holiday destinations for Indians, besides being popular for MICE [meetings, incentives, conferences, and events] traffic.”

He added, “Additionally, as the second largest trading destination for India in the ASEAN region, Indonesia exhibits great potential for business travel as well. We are delighted to be the only airline offering direct connectivity between New Delhi and Bali.” 

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While inevitably, the direct flight service between New Delhi and Bali will be utilized primarily by tourists from India, the flight service also opens up layover options for travelers from further afield.

Tourists from Europe and North and South America, as well as Africa, have limited options for layovers when traveling to Bali.

Many take layovers in Jakarta, Hong Kong, Singapore, Bangkok, and Kuala Lumpur or Dubai and Doha in the Middle East, but with round trip flights starting at USD 480, New Delhi offers another budget-friendly option for those traveling long haul to Bali. 

Tourists can anticipate more flights becoming available in 2024. Officials from both the Ministry for Tourism and Creative Economies and I Gusti Ngurah Rai International have been open about their intention to increase flight availability to and from the island. 

Tourism leaders are also on a mission to encourage tourists to stay longer on vacation, and more flight services play a key role in achieving this.

If tourists don’t need to lose extra hours, even days in transit, they have more time to spend on vacation on the island.

Travel data has shown that the average tourist stay in Bali is just 3 days. Leaders want to see this pushed to a minimum of seven days and encourage those already staying for a week to extend their travel plans further.

Leaders have committed to increasing the quality of tourism experiences across the province and helping to promote lesser-visited destinations that offer visitors the chance to connect with the incredible culture and history of the island.