Foreign Visitors to Bali Up 19.89 Percent

Denpasar (Antara Bali) -  The number of foreign visitors to Bali totaled  279,257  in January, 2014  or an increase of 19.89 percent  year-on-year.

"The Ngurah Rai international airport recorded the largest number arrivals directly from their respective countries with only 572 passengers of tourist boats,"  head of the Bali Central Bureau of Statistic (BPS) Panusunan Siregar said here on Monday.

In 2013, the number of foreign visitors to Bali totaled 3.27 million  overshooting the target of 2.8 million visitors or an increase of 11.16 percent from 2.94 million in 2012.

Panusunan Siregar said the number of visitors from seven countries rose  and from three other countries declined  in January 2014.

The largest number of visitors came from  Australia totaling 71,288  in January 2014, up 14.15 percent from  62,450 visitors in the same months  2013.

Australian accounted for 25.53 percent of the total number of visitors to Bali in January 2014, followed by China from there were  52,060 visitors  or an increase of 80.52 percent  from 28,839 visitors in the same month in 2013.

Visitors from  Malaysia also rose 28.70 percent  to 15,656 visitors  in January,  2014. Other visitors came from Singapore totaling 11,424 , up 82.57 percent  from  6,254 visitors ,  Taiwan up 1.84 percent, the United States up 9.03 percent  and from Britain up  7.06 percent.

Declines were recorded in number of visitors from Japan down 16.61 percent , South Korea  down  1.37 percent and from Ruasia 3.16 percent. (*/DWA)