Update August 2023 / Bali Tourism 2023

ISLAND TOURISM IS RECOVERING. SustainablE Or just a Trend?

If you believe the local authorities and some business owners, July and August 2023 were the highest sales months since tourism became a serious industry in Bali. On the other hand, the side effects caused by COVID and the global recession are being felt everywhere. In addition to cautious optimism that tourism will recover in the long term, there is still uncertainty in many places because no one can predict how business will develop in the medium term. All in all, the challenges are the same as in the past two years.

Thanks to the advanced infrastructure and above all the recently released visa, with which so-called digital nomads (people who can work from anywhere in the world via the Internet) can stay for 6 months and pursue professional activities, Bali has now an around 110,000 people strong expat community. Areas like Canggu, Ubud and Uluwatu in particular are thriving and villa rental prices are skyrocketing.

Bookings in the high-end segment are also stable. There is uninterrupted demand, especially in the 5-star resorts, which enjoy an excellent reputation worldwide. A large part of this Visitors are domestic travelers from other parts of Indonesia who are spending an extended weekend in Bali. Mainly from Jakarta, the capital and other big cities like Surabaya. 

Another large proportion of international tourists come arrive from other Asian countries. There are also a large number of Russians and Ukrainians who were able to escape the madness in their countries and now call Bali their home.

CAUTIOUS OPTIMISM. CHALLENGING TIMES.

One can ask why Bali is one of the most popular holiday destinations internationally: Beautiful beaches? Naturally. Good value for money? Absolutely. Compared to other destinations, however, Bali impresses above all with its incomparable hospitality and rich culture. So why do people come to Bali? Mainly because of the balinese people. And many of them are experienced, qualified masters of hospitality which have tragically had lost their jobs in the last two years. Hotel owners now face the challenge of finding and replacing good staff.

Bali residents agree that tourism in Bali will recover and perhaps even be stronger than ever. The only disagreement is when that will happen. Overall, a recovery phase of between 2 and 5 years is assumed. 

What does this mean for hoteliers?

Shortage of staff

Hotel owners now face the challenge of finding and replacing good staff.

The Balinese have always been survivalists, able to adapt to difficult circumstances. Many who previously had “secure” jobs in tourism were forced to rethink and are now pursuing other activities. This means that many employees who had to be laid off during Covid are simply no longer available.

In addition, hoteliers shy away from risks and cannot guarantee long-term employment. And short-term commitments in unstable times are not attractive enough. 

Digital Channels

Almost without exception, hotel and restaurant operations were either severely reduced or completely stopped during Covid. And with it the digital infrastructure. Websites have often become unmaintained due to the loss of critical resources, and content is now often orphaned. Connections to online travel agencies (OTA) still work at best. However, the employees who fed these and other important systems with current information on a daily basis are no longer there. We see an enormous risk here, especially for hoteliers, since good employees are difficult to find due to the specially required skills.

Pricing

Book 5 stars, pay hostel price? Fortunately, the situation has now returned to normal. Nevertheless, the market for tourists is sometimes opaque.

In order to be able to react strategically to price changes, a lot of sensitivity is now required. The art of finding dynamic prices that are based on supply and demand and are accepted by the customer.

We experience it again and again: no matter how much a hotelier would like to force customers to accept the price with a crowbar, it doesn’t work! The medium-term strategy therefore aims to stabilize prices and allow them to rise carefully again to a level that is usual for Bali, thus contributing to a certain overall market consistency.

Smart hosplitality marketing

A modern marketing solution should be adaptable to business processes. Covid in particular is forcing companies to revise their business models and explore new opportunities. Even upscale hotels are trying to market food online to generate more sales. At the same time, attempts are being made to lure walk-in guests into the facilities with day passes for pool access and attractive on-site offers such as yoga classes, art workshops, spa therapies or cooking classes, etc. An unthinkable situation for many hoteliers before Covid. Now the flexible, individual marketing of packages and activities is a MUST and indispensable.

What we offer

Luckily we have suitable solutions for these challenges. We are happy to advise hoteliers free of charge and develop individual marketing strategies with solutions that fit your company.

An excellent way to meet the current challenges and at the same time reduce complexity is to use the Profitroom Hotel Booking Engine. See the benefits here.

In addition, we offer our clients the option of temporarily outsourcing digital marketing in order to implement a quick-witted strategy.

After the business has recovered and stabilized and you have hired the right employees, we can train them so that the know-how stays with you.

If you find yourself here and we have aroused your interest, we look forward to hearing from you.