Holiday in Hell : 300 Garbage Trucks a Day Were Needed to Collect Rubbish in the Kuta Area

Shear English - Australians have a strong affinity with Bali and will keep going, travel agents say, despite it being dubbed "holidays in hell" by Time magazine. The magazine says the island is struggling with waste and some of its famous beaches are strewn with rubbish. Bali tourism agency head Ida Bagus Subhiksu said up to 300 garbage trucks a day were needed to collect rubbish in the Kuta area, a prime tourist spot. "We are not closing our eyes. It's true that we have a waste problem," he said.

But Flight Centre spokesman Haydn Long said it remains one of the top 10 destinations for Australian travellers, because of its affordability, proximity and luxurious resorts. Many are repeat customers and rarely complained about Kuta Beach, he said. Visitor numbers to Bali are growing - 2.3 million foreign tourists came last year and 2.5 million are expected this year.

"With most destinations, there's positives and negatives," Mr Long said.

"Aussies are pretty resilient and nothing really fazes them too much when they're on holidays."

He said Australians felt strongly about supporting Bali in the wake of the 2002 and 2005 bombings.

"We were getting calls from people saying 'Can I still get there? I still want to go. I love Bali, I love the people, the worst thing I can do is not go to Bali, they need my help more than ever now.'"

According to Australian Bureau of Statistics tourism figures from December, 683,700 Aussies visited Indonesia last year, a jump of nearly 21 per cent from 2009. The strong gains are partly due to budget flights offered by Strategic Airlines, the ABS report said. It was the third most popular destination after New Zealand and the United States. Travellers from around the world using Lonely Planet's online forum Thorn Tree were generally positive about their recent experiences in Bali.

"Kuta, Bali is very commercial but still a nice spot for a conventional beach holiday if that's what you want," British traveller Cazmondo said.

Bali local Putusukma said Kuta's beaches could get messy with garbage from the river flow, but there were plenty of alternative beaches.

"Bali was touristy but it didn't take away from its beauty, at least for us," Canadian traveller amz151 wrote.

Some people posted warnings about thefts, noise and gave examples of bad accommodation around Kuta Beach. US traveller LexS said the Kuta area was "anything but serene". But others wrote about the joys of getting off the beaten track and discovering some of its hidden gems.

"I feel really blessed experiencing a Bali that the majority of tourist never sees. I know to some Bali does seem overly developed and this is true but if you do try you can still find the real Bali out there," said janus50.

Bali Tours' Gordon Tanner said Time magazine's criticism came as a surprise.

"There was always a perception in the past - I'm talking 20 years ago - that it was dirty and just for people who wanted to go and buy cheap knick knacks.

"But it's metamorphasised into an amazingly upmarket destination.

"People are going to be picky with certain things, that's bound to take place from time to time." 

English - KOMPAS.com