Tourists traveling to Bali quite rightly want to be off the plane and into their accommodation as quickly as possible.
Here at The Bali Sun, we are all too aware that over the peak travel season, encountering queues at Bali’s I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport is an all too common occurrence, which is why we are on a mission to help keep travelers moving with ease.
Bali’s I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport is working hard to improve the passenger experience.
Although the airport has been recognized in international awards ceremonies as one of the best airport terminals in the world, the management team feels that even more can be done to help keep passengers moving safely and smoothly throughout the terminals.
It is not only the I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport management team who are working to create improvements, but Ngurah Rai Immigration too. The airport and immigration are working together to create more streamlined processes for passengers, but improvements are going to take a collective effort.
The Head of the Ngurah Rai Immigration Office, Bugie Kurniawan, has confirmed to reporters that teams will be implementing a new passenger flow system to help reduce queue time and keep everyone moving. He explained, “As soon as the passengers arrived at the international arrivals area, I, as an officer, noticed that our arrivals area was crowded. I think it was because there were too many desks and agencies located between the passenger arrivals area and the immigration counter.”
He added, “This is what we are trying to improve by re-layout and re-flowing passengers, thus creating a seamless immigration service or checkpoint…This way, all passengers will proceed directly to immigration, either through the autogate or to the counter. From there, we’ll direct them according to their needs.”
While leaders are putting new systems in place to help keep tourists traveling through the terminals in a speedy way, tourists must also elect to use the more speedy systems, and that requires a little forward planning. Kurniawan and his teams at Ngurah Rai Immigration are encouraging tourists to opt for more digitalized pre-arrival processes to help keep everyone moving.
Tourist who want to have their immigration check time reduced to just a matter of seconds need to be able to use the immigration autogates that are installed at both the arrivals and departure terminals at the domestic and international terminals. The autogates enable passengers to scan their passports and boarding passes in less than 30 seconds. There is a catch, however, the autogates can only be used by those who have an eVisa.
Kurniawan told reporters that this autogate is so fast that it doesn’t compromise on security. The inspection system is so sophisticated.” Adding “The hope is that passengers will complete immigration checks more quickly, smoothly, and comfortably. This could be spread through word of mouth that Ngurah Rai Immigration is becoming more sophisticated, easier, and more convenient.”
For decades, tourists arriving in Bali either enjoyed visa-free travel or entered the country on the Visa on Arrival, which could be paid for and applied for, as the name suggested, on arrival at any of Indonesia’s international airports.
While this system is still available for those who need to use it, opting for an eVisa makes things a lot quicker on arrival at Bali Airport.
Tourists traveling to Bali are encouraged to apply for their eVisa on Arrival in the two weeks prior to their trip. The eVisa on Arrival can be applied for very easily on the Official Indonesia eVisa website.
The visa costs IDR 500,000, is valid for 30 days, and can be extended one time for a further 30 days using the hybrid application system.
Other things that tourists must do prior to traveling to Bali to help ensure a smooth and speedy arrival process are to complete their arrival card and declarations via the All Indonesia app, pay their Bali Tourism Tax Levy on the LoveBali website or app, and have their QR-code voucher easily at hand in case officers check it.
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