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Bali upbeat for tourism rebound as more international travelers arrive
Tourism workers and the local government are hopeful that Bali's stronger reopening starting this month will get the resort island back on its feet.
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Drivers wait to pick up travelers at the arrival area of I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport, Bali, on Monday. (The Jakarta Post/Ni Komang Erviani)
K
etut Dharma could not stop smiling as he held a pickup sign at I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport's arrival hall for the first time in two years on Monday. His eyes flickered as he scanned the people coming out of the gate.
He was waiting for a couple who were among 271 passengers of budget airline Jetstar’s first flight from Australia to Bali since the pandemic hit.
“Finally I’m back here. Hopefully these arrivals will continue and Bali tourism will go back to normal soon,” the 44-year-old father of two said.
The Australian couple were repeat guests who had contacted him before the flight and asked him to take them around while in Bali.
Dharma said that as a freelance driver, the pandemic had been the hardest time for him in the last 20 years.
With no international travelers coming to Bali, Dharma has struggled to make an income from working for ride-hailing companies. Before COVID-19, he used to be able to make at least Rp 10 million (US$698) a month.
During the pandemic, he could not even get half of that and had to borrow money from a bank to fulfill his family needs. “I hope more tourists are coming, so I can pay off my loan,” he said.
