What the tourism chief said
Bali Tourism Office (Dispar) head I Wayan Sumarajaya said in Denpasar on Tuesday, 20 October 2026, that the fuel shortage which lasted about a week did not hit visitor numbers. Neither foreign nor domestic arrivals saw a sharp drop, he stressed.
The official backed this with figures. In mid-October, he said, between 22,000 and 24,000 foreign tourists arrive in Bali every day. That equals the average level in September. September 2026 recorded 745,186 foreign visits in total. The official cited these numbers as evidence that a short fuel shortage did not break the usual rhythm of inbound tourism. The source has no separate statistics for domestic guests, so that assessment remains the agency head's own word.
What changed on the ground
Sumarajaya acknowledged that in practice the problem still forced some adjustments. Based on reports from tourism companies, they had to renegotiate schedules for visits to attractions. He said the matter was handled quickly. In essence these were organisational inconveniences for groups and guides rather than lost tourists. The source gives no figure for losses at individual companies.
The official said that so far agents have made no direct complaints. However, some operators said they needed to re-plan routes that had been set days in advance. According to Dispar, there were no official reports of trips cancelled because of the fuel shortage.
What is expected from Pertamina
The Dispar chief voiced a wish that Pertamina, the state energy company, anticipate distribution problems and prevent a repeat. He noted that the latest disruption in the end did not harm Bali's tourism sector as a whole.
This is an official's request rather than a decision taken. The source names no new measures or deadlines from the company.
How normalisation is going
Fuel queues in Bali are gradually shrinking. Pertamina brought shipments to the Sanggaran and Manggis depots, and the situation began to improve after that.
The provincial government's measures also helped distribution. They include a purchase scheme based on odd and even dates and limits on how much can be bought at one time. We previously reported that the scheme was extended to 23 October 2026, so its end has not yet been announced.
What it means for the island economy
Bali tourism depends on steady fuel supply, which taxis, transfers, tour operators and the suppliers that stock hotels and villas all need. That is why Dispar's remark that visitor flow stayed at its previous level matters to the whole sector. But it is an official's assessment of total visits, not a report broken down by district or type of accommodation.
The source has no data on villa or hotel occupancy for this period. For investors this means overall inbound flow remains a reference indicator, while the actual return on a specific property depends on its area, the season and management. The effect on short-term rentals can only be judged from later statistics.