It may come as a shock to some people who visit Bali and never venture beyond its shores, but Bali is just one island in an archipelago of thousands that constitute the Republic of Indonesia.

While the island is predominantly Hindu and has a different calendar and culture with unique ceremonies and celebrations, Bali is not an independent country and as such it is subject to the same public holidays the rest of the country enjoys.

And Indonesia's biggest national holiday of Idul Fitri is just around the corner.

This year, Idul Fitri is set to take place from June 14 - 16. It is a Muslim celebration following the holy month of Ramadhan where fasting from sunrise to sunset is meant to bring followers closer to God through a spiritual and physical cleansing.

More commonly know in Indonesia as Lebaran, Idul Fitri is when tens of millions of people travel to their hometowns visiting family and friends to ask for forgiveness for any wrong doings committed during the year. It's a mass movement of souls called Mudik and this year the government has announced extended public holidays to accommodate the inevitable unofficial extended holidays and travel related delays people encounter at this time.

Indonesia is the world's largest Islamic country by population. Pew Research estimates there are some 209 million people in Indonesia who identify themselves as Muslim, which translates to just over 87% of the country's entire 265 million people. In a recent survey, Traveloka estimated around 62% of the population will be travelling during Idul Fitri and of these, 60% prefer to fly.

Lebaran in Bali

Although many workers in Bali are Muslim and hail from neighbouring islands, Idul Fitri does not usually mean deserted streets and empty hotels as the workforce goes home for the holidays. Far from it, Bali is an increasingly popular destination for domestic tourists during this time and this year expectations are high because Idul Fitri coincides with school holidays.

Anton Sukartono Suratto, Vice Chairman of Commission V of Bali's House of Representatives, said that all lines related to infrastructure and transportation in Bali are considered ready to face the anticipated increase in visitors arriving for Lebaran in 2018, according to a recent report in Tribun News.

In a recent interview reported by Netral News, Director of Operations and Engineering of Bali's Ngurah Rai International Aiport, Joko Murjatmojo said the airport was anticipating almost 7 million Idul Fitri travellers this year, an increase of around 10% on 2017.

Garuda Indonesia and Citilink

In anticipation of the holidays, Garuda Indonesia and its subsidiary, Citilink are preparing an additional 768 flights, which according to Pahala N. Mansury, the airline's President Director, is equivalent to more than 64,000 extra seats, almost 40% more than last year's allocation.

AirAsia Indonesia

Dendy Kurniawan, CEO of PT AirAsia Indonesia also told reporters that an additional 14,000 Air Asia seats would be made available for their most popular routes including Surabaya - Denpasar, which will see an additional six flights per day from June 12 - 14 and June 17 - 22.

Sriwijaya Air

Local carrier, Sriwijaya Air also confirmed they too will be providing greater capacity in cooperation with Nam Air. Senior Corporate Communications Manager, Agus Soedjono said to reporters last week there would be 860 extra flights with a capacity of just over 193,000 additional seats for the holidays.

Idul Fitri 2018 in Indonesia will begin in the evening of Thursday, June 14 and end in the evening of Saturday, June 16. However, this year the government has announced extra official holidays for June 11, 12 and 20, which effectively means a 10-day break, during which time banks and government offices will have limited opening hours or remain closed.

Sources: Bali Post, The World Bank, Pew Research, Tribun News, Netral News, The Jakarta Post, Traveloka, Asia News Network

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