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Daily Telegraph, Sunday October
19th 2002
Travel news: Beyond Bali
By Paul Miles
British travellers planning trips to Bali in the coming months
should be able to cancel or defer without penalty following
last Saturday's bomb attack on the island. Alternatively, they
are being urged to consider other destinations.
The Foreign Office has advised against all travel to Indonesia
and urged Britons already there to consider leaving. The Australian
government also advised its citizens to leave after announcing
it had received "disturbing new threats" against Australians
in the country.
Raj Kumar, head of global tour operating
at lastminute.com,
which has 470 people due to travel to Bali between now and November
21, is recommending Malaysia - especially Penang - and Cuba
as alternative destinations. So far two of lastminute.com's
booked holidays have been cancelled, 11 have been changed to
Cuba and seven to Malaysia, with more expected to change in
the near future.
Surprisingly, although thousands of tourists on Bali left as
soon as they could after the blast, many Britons preferred to
stay. Of 73 lastminute.com clients there, only two wanted to
relocate. They went to Thailand for the second week of a two-week
holiday, without incurring any financial penalty.
First Choice Holidays had 175 passengers in Bali at the time
of the bomb. Of those, only three chose to return to Britain
immediately. All First Choice customers booked to travel to
Bali between now and October 31 have been given the option of
cancelling or choosing an alternative destination. Thailand,
Singapore, Penang, Hong Kong, the Maldives and the Caribbean
are all being chosen, said a spokesman.
Kuoni Travel, which had 371 people in Bali, is offering people
with bookings between now and this time next year alternative
beach destinations, including Mexico and Thailand. Most people
already there want to stay on, said a spokeswoman. Kuoni takes
8,500 people a year to Bali, the company's 11th best-selling
destination.
In addition to tour operators, airlines are being flexible with
all ticket holders, including independent travellers who aren't
covered by package holiday regulations.
Garuda, the only airline to fly direct to Bali from Britain,
is offering passengers with tickets booked on or before October
14 the chance to cancel or to change their departure to any
date until the end of March 2003. But if the new departure date
falls within the Christmas high season, the difference must
be paid.
Garuda flies about 400 people three times a week to Bali from
Britain. A spokeswoman said approximately 20 per cent have cancelled.
Some people are keen to continue with travel to Bali as normal.
Angela Hudson, 25, from Leeds, is going for two weeks next month.
She said: "I fully intend not to let recent events change
my plans. I am due to stay near Kuta for the first two nights
and, while I am a little wary, I'm not going to let a few extremists
affect things."
However, travellers who go to Bali will probably not be covered
by their travel insurance policies, many of which have had an
exclusion for acts of terrorism since September 11 last year.
"People should assess the risks and look at Foreign Office
advice, but if you do go, you put your policy in jeopardy,"
said Jacquie Goozee, a spokeswoman for American Express.
The British tourism industry will not be hit hard by advice
for nationals not to travel to Indonesia, according to the Association
of British Travel Agents. Its spokesman, Sean Tipton, said:
"Indonesia is not exactly a popular destination at the
best of times."
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