Forbes is a company that serves the luxury travel market and won’t appeal to many long distance budget travelers. Still it is interesting to note the 10 new travel trends Forbes note and see how they are relevant to Bali.
According to Forbes the ‘Ten Travel Trends You Can’t Ignore‘ are:
1. Environmental awareness.
2. Hotel Owned Villas
3. Private Jet Travel
4. Human travel agents
5. Adults only vacations
6. Multi-Generational Travel
7. Yacht Charters
8. Traveling with An Entourage
9. Vacation On The Decline
10. A New Definition Of Camping
Here’s how that list might relate to Bali.
1. Environmental awareness. Environmental / cultural awareness is something you can add to a Bali holiday. There are 2 places at Gunung Batukaru (The Eco Lodge and Batukaru Mountain Retreat) that are wonderfully situated in highland jungle and who’s owners are knowledgable about the flora and fauna. JED is a non-profit that offers culturally sensitive village tours to 4 areas in Bali.
2. Hotel Owned Villas. This is something Bali has taken to heart. Simply browse the websites of any major hotel / resort and you’ll see options for private villas, which come with plunge pools, bale structures, zen rock styling, personal chef / pembantu etc.
3. Private Jet Travel. You could use your own jet to get to Bali from other SE Asian / Australian airports. Once in Bali its is possible to rent helicopters and fixed wing planes from Air Bali.
4. Human travel agents. Bali has a wealth of local travel agents who can provide services such as day tours, vehicle hire, car with driver, booking domestic and international airline tickets. These places are informal, easy to use and fairly efficient.
5. Adults only vacations. Bali does attack the tourism market from all angles. With budget, mid-range, boutique hotels and large high end resorts and villas, it is not that hard to create a ‘kids-free’ environment for yourself.
6. Multi-Generational Travel. Hotels in Bali often have ‘Family rooms’ for rent, with a couple of bedrooms lounge area and kitchen. This is great for families with kids or family groups wanting a closer experience than just eating in the hotel restaurant.
7. Yacht Charters. Bali may not be a big yacht center (due to lack of a decent harbor, reef and waves) but you can rent boats for the day or longer. Visiting yachts do stop off in Padangbai and Bali would make a great place to come ashore for anyone touring with a yacht.
8. Traveling with An Entourage. For those with an entourage, Bali has the large scale hotel resorts that can handle your group. Nusa Dua in particular is set up for large scale events and large family / wedding/ social groups.
9. A New Definition Of Camping. Camping is not something that is popular in Bali, either with local or tourists. This is not likely to change and even the staff in a Kuta camping store will tell you they don’t like camping. Oh well, you can’t be good at everything. If you have to camp, the higher elevations on Gunung Batukaru will work.
10. Vacation On The Decline. For many people the time constraints of work and budget limitations mean vacations / holidays get axed. Bali can work for both of those problem areas. People on a time crunch who are looking to maximize their short holiday can fly into Bali and stay at a great hotel in Tuban, right on the beach just 1 mile from the airport. It doesn’t get much easier than that and you can be in your hotel pool with cold drink within an hour of landing. Flying to Bali may cost you a bit more than driving to the Gold Coast, but once here you do have budget options that can swing the pendulum in your favour. Kuta, Seminyak, Candi Dasa, Padangbai, Lovina, Amed all have budget accommodation from 50,000-100,000rp per night (cheaper if you book for a week / month). Meals are cheap to and if you are willing to drive yourself a motorbike will cost 450,000-500,000rp per month.
