Hotels in Bali are reportedly making necessary adjustments to respond to the impacts of the coronavirus outbreak on the tourism industry, including temporarily suspending operations.
The Bali Hotels Association (BHA), whose members include general managers of over 100 four-star and five-star hotels and resorts in Bali, said that most accommodations and restaurants in Bali have opted to temporarily close for at least one month.
“At this time, almost all hotels and restaurants in Bali are closed temporarily for one to two months, as we monitor the most up to date situation,” BHA chairman I Made Ricky Darmika Putra told state news agency Antara yesterday.
Ricky also responded to circulating information that many hotels in Bali are up for sale, clarifying that those reports are false.
In addition, he explained how hotels that are still open have less than 10 percent occupancy rates, while most restaurants have cut their operational hours short.
Meanwhile, some other hotels are still seeking to attract potential customers, and are rolling out cheap promotions on long-term stays. One example is Lv8, a hotel located in Canggu, which offers a one-month stay fee starting from IDR8million (US$481). For perspective, the hotel’s normal daily rate ranges from IDR800K-1 million.
As of yesterday afternoon, Bali has recorded 35 confirmed cases of COVID-19, which includes 2 deaths of foreign nationals and 18 recoveries. In addition, there are 188 patients under observation and 622 people under monitoring on the island.
Indonesia has begun to suspend all foreign arrivals, barring a few exceptions, on April 2. Prior to the measure, Bali has already recorded a 95 percent fall in foreign tourists, from around 10,000 daily arrivals to only 500.
Foreign missions in the country have been urging their respective citizens to leave Indonesia, citing increasing cases of COVID-19 and concerns over the country’s healthcare system.
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