Russian airlines have expressed interest in opening direct flight routes to Indonesia, especially Jakarta and Bali.
Indonesia continues to grow as a popular destination for foreign tourists. One country from which many tourists visit Indonesia, especially Jakarta and Bali, is Russia. This has led Russian airlines to express interest in opening direct flight routes to Indonesia.
Officials from the Russian Ministry of Economic Development have stated that certain conditions must be met to launch direct flights. Responding to this, the Indonesian Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, Sandiaga Uno, confirmed that his department is addressing some obstacles related to the direct flight plan between Russia and Indonesia.
“There are several obstacles that the [Russian] Ambassador conveyed, such as review links and service on direct flights from Russia, but we are trying to overcome them,” said Uno at the Opening Ceremony of the International Tourism Investment Forum (ITIF) on Wednesday, the 5th of June.
According to Uno, possible direct flights from Russia to Indonesia are expected to increase the number of Russian tourists visiting the country potentially. Nonetheless, the character of the Russian tourists in question must be kept in mind.
“So that we can attract additional potential tourists from Russia, but of higher quality—those who stay longer and can have a positive impact instead of breaking the law [here in Indonesia],” continued Uno.
On a previous occasion, the Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Indonesia, Lyudmila Vorobieva, had said that direct flights from Moscow, Russia to Denpasar, Bali, could resume immediately after the end of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Many of our [Russian] citizens travel to Bali, which is one of the most popular tourist destinations for the Russians, and the number of our tourist arrivals has approached the level before the COVID-19 pandemic. We hope that direct flights between Moscow and Denpasar can be reopened soon,” said Vorobieva.