The moment is now. Finally, after the pandemic has upended our lives, I can finally venture outside of Australia. First stop – Bali. As I boarded my Qantas flight to Bali’s Ngurah Rai airport I began to wonder how has Bali changed?
As if Melbourne’s brutal lockdowns were not enough, Australia also had a strict ban on Aussies leaving the country. This ban lasted until November 2021.
When the borders finally opened, I was in the advanced stages of organizing a knockdown rebuild on my old home which for a number of reasons necessitated me being in Melbourne. Those commitments have been dealt with now it’s time to go.
New entry requirements
Since my last visit to Bali in 2018, the Indonesian government has changed entry requirements for Australians. First of all, Aussies now need a visa to enter Indonesia. This can be purchased on arrival at a cost of USD $35, though the fee can be paid in a range of currencies.
There have been a few changes due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Firstly, you will need to have proof of at least 2 vaccine doses. Proof is via a vaccine certificate which you should organize before you leave home. Australians can obtain via the Medicare app.
Second, at the time of writing it was necessary to load the Indonesian government contract tracing app, Pedu-liLindungi, to your phone. In practice, nobody asked me to see it when we entered the country.
Until recently, travel insurance which covered COVID-19 to a value of USD $10,000 was an entry requirement, though I believe that has recently been dropped.
Traversing Ngurah Rai airport
As you get off the plane and make your way through Denpasar airport you will reach an area with perhaps 100 socially distanced seats and half a dozen desks which are attended by officials checking your vaccine certificate.
Passing the certificate check you will be directed to an area on your right where you pay for a visa-on-arrival, if you need one. Beyond that is the usual immigration and customs checks.
I should note, unlike the other times I have been to Ngurah Rai airport, there was zero free WiFi available throughout the international terminal. The domestic terminal had the usual fast and free WiFi available.
First impressions
As we arrived relatively late at night we spent our first night at the Hilton, just outside the boundary of the airport, In the morning I went for a walk through many back streets and ended up in Kuta, not somewhere I usually like to hangout.
In the area surrounding Kuta I could not help but notice the number of businesses which had closed. In some areas I’d estimate the loss at over 1/3. When you consider there is a family’s income behind each of those businesses you understand the devastation wrought on the area. Extraordinarily sad.
It's not all bad
While the devastation is obvious in Kuta, it is slightly less so in Seminyak and Canggu. Both areas appear to be bouncing back strongly from the 2 years without tourists. Numbers were perhaps 60 – 70% of pre-pandemic levels.
Pleasingly, most of my usual favorite eateries and beach clubs have survived. I’ll write about a few of them in an upcoming trip report.
Bali has long been a favorite destination for a Australian travelers. The island’s close proximity to Australia, great weather, and relaxed atmosphere have not changed. The reality is that there’s never been a better time to visit and the Balinese would love to see you.