Bali Wants A Higher Tourist Tax To Curb Bad Behaviour From Rowdy Visitors
Credit: Getty Images
— 24 June 2024

Bali Wants A Higher Tourist Tax To Curb Bad Behaviour From Rowdy Visitors

— 24 June 2024
Garry Lu
WORDS BY
Garry Lu

Bali lawmakers have proposed raising the current 150,000 rupiah ($13.75) tourism tax to 750,000 rupiah ($68.75) to prevent the international travel market’s “bottom” from flooding the popular Indonesian holiday destination.

“I think the 150,000 rupiah tax is too low, so Bali seems like a cheap tourist destination,” Bali Regional Legislative Council leader, Kresna Budi, told reporters last week.

RELATED: The Ultimate Guide To Bali’s Canggu (Where To Eat, Stay, & Play)

Budi added the travellers who visit Bali should be of “higher quality,” as opposed to the belligerent and often-times problematic riffraff it’s become synonymous with; while citing the millions of rupiah Indonesians are required to pay for a visa to Britain.

“Why should Bali be sold cheaply?”

“There is this problem because usually, those who act up are members of the bottom [lower-spending tourists],” he said (via The Bali Sun).

Back in early 2024, the travel levy was introduced to fund improvements to the island’s education and health sectors; in addition to the more obvious channels of tourism initiatives. But according to The Straits Times, only 40% of the estimated 2.2 million inbound visitors since the tax’s implementation have ponied up.

BaliDiscovery notes the fee collection “has been plagued by inefficiency, with only a minority of foreign visitors actually paying.”

RELATED: This Boeing 737 Has Been Transformed Into An Epic Bali Villa

Bali tourism chief Tjok Bagus Pemayun reveals stricter enforcement at Denpasar International Airport is now on the cards, which included automated scanners once upon a time (before this fell through due to space constraints).

The amended Bali tourism tax is now being considered by Acting Governor Sang Made Mahendra Jaya.

“We want the handling [of badly behaved tourists] to be fully carried out and not half-hearted,” said Acting Governor Jaya.


Now check out the 11 greatest Airbnb villas available to book in Bali right now (including the one featured above).

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Garry Lu
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After stretching his legs with companies such as The Motley Fool and the odd marketing agency, Garry joined Boss Hunting in 2019 as a fully-fledged Content Specialist. In 2021, he was promoted to News Editor. Garry proudly retains a blue belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, black bruises from Muay Thai, as well as a black belt in all things pop culture. Drop him a line at [email protected]

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