Ep 33: Bali's Reopening Postponed: What Next for Tourism in Indonesia & South East Asia?
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26 Aug 2020 • 31m10sAfter 2 months of high anticipation, Bali has confirmed it will not reopen to international visitors on 11 September. Instead, the Island of the Gods will likely rely on domestic travel only until the end of the year. This is a huge financial and psychological blow for Indonesia’s travel economy - but perhaps not a great surprise.
This week, Gary and Hannah discuss the national, regional and global factors that conspired against Bali’s inbound tourism reboot.
What will be the consequences for the tourism sector in Indonesia and South East Asia? And with 2020 fast running out, where do the region’s embattled travel businesses turn to next for hope, inspiration and much-needed revenues?
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Ep 265: Rethinking Indonesia's Under-achieving Inbound Tourism Sector, with Nur Wulan T
“Indonesia has the potential to lead in eco-tourism, in cultural heritage and in Muslim-friendly tourism… but it tries to promote everything all at once, which dilutes the message.” Beautiful, vast and complex, Indonesia is the world’s largest archipelago nation, and home to the planet’s fourth-largest population. But tourism is heavily concentrated in Bali, which recorded 45% of inbound arrivals to Indonesia in 2024.
Meanwhile, Indonesia lags behind Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam for visitor arrivals, attracting 13.
