Jakarta to Bali the safe way
May 9th, 2008
I will be in Jakarta in June and intend to take a seven-day break while in Indonesia, to Bali. I am traveling independently, so can you advise which is the cheapest and most reliable airline that I should book with, and should I book the ticket now, or when I get to Jakarta? - Peter Morton, Newcastle upon Tyne
Sunday Times travel expert Richard Green responds:
There have been a spate of air crashes in Indonesia over recent years, and the situation has got so bad that the EU has added all Indonesia-based carriers to its banned list - see http://ec.europa.eu/transport/air-ban/list_en.htm. It means that the EU aviation authorities feel the airlines there all fall short of acceptable safety standards.
Everyone who’s ever been to Indonesia has an airline horror story  mine was in Sumatra on an old Merpati airlines plane with black smoke billowing from the for right engine  so for time being, you are better off booking with on alternative carriers.
Until recently this wasn’t possible, and you’d be stuck with Garuda (www.garuda-indonesia.com), Lion Air (www.lion.co.id), which has new aircraft and uses the accidentally menacing strap line ‘We make people fly’, or Adam Air (so bad that it has even been grounded by the Indonesian government).
But now there Malaysia-based Air Asia provide budget style domestic flights inside Indonesia with a young fleet of Boeing 737s.
As with Low Cost Carriers anywhere else in the world, you should book as early as you can to get the really cheap fares. Right now, Air Asia has return fares from Jakarta to Bali (Denpasar), including taxes, from £41.
Most UK-based travel web sites won’t quote you fares inside Indonesia, but an exception is Alternative Airlines (0871 222 9222, www.alternativeairlines.com), which has fares with Garuda and Air Asia.
Source: http://travel.timesonline.co.uk/
Entry Filed under: Bali Tourism News
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