Russian airline Aeroflot will open direct flights from Moscow (SVO) to Denpasar, Bali (DPS), starting September 17. Flights will take place twice a week.
As reported by Tempo.com, the Russian airline will provide direct Russia-Bali flight routes from September to October this year. This is the first time since international borders reopened after the COVID-19 pandemic.
In February 2024, Lyudmila Vorobieva, the Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Indonesia, expressed her hope that they could reopen direct Moscow-Denpasar flights soon after the COVID-19 pandemic ended.
She said that many Russians want to holiday in Bali, and the number of Russian tourists visiting Indonesia has approached pre-pandemic levels.
Previously, Aeroflot Group operated direct flights to Bali four years ago. In August 2020, these flights were temporarily suspended amid the pandemic and have not been resumed since.
Many Russian Tourists Travel to Bali
Previously, Social Expat also reported that Russia plans to open a consulate general in Denpasar, Bali, to facilitate the needs of the many Russian travellers there.
Russian Ambassador to Indonesia Sergei Tolchenov, who has only been in the country for two months, revealed that the Russian government made the decision in July this year.
The Bali Tourism Office also noted an increasing trend in foreign tourists from Russia visiting the Island of the Gods. The war factor is predicted to have increased the number of Russian tourists in Bali.
“The war only accelerated (the arrival of Russian tourists). But what is clear is that Russian tourists favour Bali,” said Head of the Bali Tourism Office Tjok Bagus Pemayun, as reported by detikBali, Friday.
He continued that Russian tourists are ranked second among foreign tourists who visit Bali, at 22,703 people, based on data from the Bali Tourism Office as of January