Bali adds IDR 25,000 entry fee

Bali is adding another tourism charge, but the important thing is where it applies. This is not a new island-wide Bali entry fee. It is a local Kintamani visitor retribution run by Bangli Regency, and officials say a one-gate digital payment system is set to be tested in July 2026. That distinction matters, because Bali already has a separate provincial tourist levy for foreign visitors — and the overlap is exactly where confusion starts. ### So what actually changed? Bangli Regency is overhauling how visitors pay to enter Kintamani’s tourism area on Jalan Raya Penelokan. The local government says the old setup will be replaced with an online one-gate system, with a trial scheduled for July 2026. Local reporting ties that rollout to a retribution charge of IDR 25,000 per visitor. ### Wait — is this the same as Bali’s tourist tax? No. Bali’s provincial levy is a different charge entirely. Since February 14, 2024, foreign tourists visiting Bali have been required to pay IDR 150,000 through the Love Bali system. That money is framed as support for preserving Balinese culture and the natural environment, and the official site still lists the levy and payment channels. (detik.com) ### Then what is Kintamani paying for? Kintamani is a specific high-traffic tourism zone in Bangli Regency, not a province-wide arrival checkpoint. Bangli officials have been pushing tighter supervision there to raise tourism retribution revenue, and the one-gate model is basically a way to centralize collection and reduce leakage. In plain English — the local government wants fewer side entrances, cleaner payment records, and better control over crowds moving through one of Bali’s busiest scenic areas. (lovebali.baliprov.go.id) ### Why Kintamani? Because Kintamani is one of Bali’s most visited upland destinations — volcano views, lake views, geopark traffic, and constant day-trip flows. That popularity is good for business, but it also creates the usual mess: congestion, uneven fee collection, and pressure on roads and public services. A one-gate system is the bureaucratic version of putting a turnstile on a crowded platform — not glamorous, but easier to monitor. (bali.antaranews.com) ### How are people supposed to pay? For the Kintamani fee, the plan is digital payment through the new local system once the July 2026 trial begins. For Bali’s separate foreign tourist levy, the official channel is Love Bali, which says payment is cashless and can be made before arrival, at airport and port counters, or through registered tourism endpoints. If a site asks for a random “Bali arrival card fee,” that is a red flag already. (detik.com) ### Where do scams enter the picture? Indonesia does require an electronic customs declaration for international arrivals, but the official customs form is on the Directorate General of Customs and Excise site and it is not a Bali tourism tax. Customs authorities have also warned about fake lookalike sites impersonating the e-CD system. So travelers now need to separate three things in their heads: the Bali foreign tourist levy, the customs declaration, and this new Kintamani local retribution. (detik.com) ### What should travelers do now? Treat every Bali payment request as category-specific. Bali-wide foreign tourist levy — Love Bali. Indonesia customs declaration — official e-CD. Kintamani local entry fee — Bangli’s system once the July 2026 trial is live. If a website blurs those categories, charges wildly more, or pretends one form covers everything, back out. ### Bottom line? Bali did not suddenly slap one new universal IDR 25,000 entry fee on everyone. (ecd.beacukai.go.id) What’s happening is messier — and more typical. A local government in Kintamani is digitizing a destination-specific charge, while Bali’s separate IDR 150,000 foreign tourist levy stays in place. The real risk for travelers is not the fee itself. It is paying the wrong site for the wrong thing. (lovebali.baliprov.go.id)