(9/6/2003)
Month-to-month arrival figures for April 2003 show Bali's tourism slump deepening as the result of the SARS scare and the U.S. invasion of Iraq.
Island's Arrivals Down 43.88%
April arrival figures through Bali's Ngurah Rai International Airport totaled 58,900, down 43.88% from the same month in 2002, and down 49.68% from the April figures for 2001.
The seasonality of Bali tourism arrivals dictate that visitors arrivals increase month to month during the first half of the year leading up to the traditional high season of July to September. The latest figures add to growing concerns regarding Bali's future tourism fortunes with April figures demonstrating a downward trend, falling 24% from arrivals for March.
The latest arrival figures suggest Bali's recovery following the October 2002 terrorist attack on a Bali nightspot will definitely be a more prolonged process than the return to healthy numbers in the first half of 2002 following the 9-11 tragedy. In 2002, Bali's arrivals rebounded quickly managing to affect a complete recovery by May and setting record monthly arrival figures from May through September in that year.
Nationwide arrivals via the Country's 13 international gateways totaled 204,600 for April. Total arrivals nation-wide for the first four months of 2003 are down 19.7% year-to-year for 2002.
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