Emirates will deploy its first-ever Airbus A380 route to Indonesia, with a daily service from Dubai International Airport (DXB) to Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport (DPS), starting June 2023.
The two-class (business and economy) A380 service will replace one of the two daily flights to DPS airport currently operated by a two-class Boeing 777-300ER aircraft.
The new A380 DXB – DPS service will operate on the following schedule:
EK368 departs Dubai at 03:25 local time, arriving in Bali at 16:35 local time.
EK369, departs Bali at 19:40 local time, arriving in Dubai at 00:45 local time.
Emirates said that Bali continues to be one of the most popular tourist destinations in its network and strategic markets in Southeast Asia.
“The Emirates A380 is synonymous with our fly better promise and world-class products and services, and we’re excited to offer our travelers the opportunity to experience its uniqueness and unmatched beauty on flights to and from Bali. Needless to say that we’ve been working closely with our partners at Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport to ensure our A380 operations will be seamless and smooth,” Adnan Kazim, Emirates’ chief commercial officer, said in a statement.
Tourism accounts for almost 60% of Bali’s economy. In 2019, the island received a record 6.2 million foreign visitors. According to Indonesia’s Central Bureau of Statistics, Bali received 377,276 visits in December 2022, representing an increase of 31.27% over November 2022 levels.
During January 2023, Central Bureau of Statistics recorded a number of visitors from Australia, Russia, India, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, United Kingdom, United States, China, and Germany coming to Bali.
According to the Diplomat, in late 2022 the Indonesian government announced that a Second Home Visa – adapted from the country’s existing retirement visa – would be available from December 24, 2022 for foreigners looking to work remotely from one of the country’s 18,000-odd islands for up to 10 years.
The scheme hopes to attract more so-called ‘digital nomads’, of which Bali currently has over 5,000.