Jakarta. Saudi Arabia's flag carrier Saudia officially launched a flight service to Indonesia's tourist hot spot Bali from Jeddah.

Saudia Airlines will have scheduled service from Jeddah to Bali three times a week, namely every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. It will use a 787-900 Dreamliner Boeing with 24 business class seats and 274 economy class seats.

"This flight service will increase the number of Saudi Arabian tourists visiting Bali," the province's governor Wayan Koster said in Denpasar on Tuesday, as reported by the state news agency Antara.

The immigration office at Bali's I Gusti Ngurah Rai Airport recorded 14,000 Saudi tourists throughout 2024. The airport saw approximately 3,000 Saudi visitors so far this year as of March.

"Data shows that the number of Saudi people visiting Bali is on the rise. We expect a greater increase [in Saudi travelers] now that the [Saudia's Bali-Jeddah route] has entered operations," Koster said.

Saudia carried 118 passengers in the inaugural Jeddah-Bali flight. The aircraft landed on Bali on Monday evening. The plane then returned to Jeddah via Singapore with 113 passengers on board. To date, the I Gusti Ngurah Rai serves 40 international flight routes in 20 countries with 43 carriers.

Bali is aiming to attract 6.5 million foreign tourists this year. The local government requires foreigners who wish to visit Bali to pay a levy worth Rp 150,000 or approximately $9. The money will go into preserving the local culture and natural heritage. They can pay the tax online via the Love Bali website.