Bali Becomes A Sought-After Incentive Destination

<FONT SIZE="+3"><B>Bali Becomes A Sought-After Incentive Destination</B>

By Norman Sklarewitz

<I>Bali, Indonesia </I>- The past three years has seen this fabled island resort-about 9,000 miles from the continental United States-become one of the hottest new Asia-Pacific destinations for corporate incentive groups.

Most industry watchers concur that incentive groups make up at least 15 percent of all arrivals here. "Companies can't keep sending their people to the same resort destinations year after year or it's no longer an incentive," said Neil Jacobs, regional vice president for Four Seasons Resorts in Indonesia and general manager of the Four Seasons Resort at Jimbaran Bay. "But within the past three years, Bali has been discovered as offering something exciting and new. Everyone has visited Hawaii and most have been to Europe, but only a few have experienced Bali."

Corporate groups have taken over the entire Four Seasons at Jimaran Bay on several occasions. The largest incentive program here took place when Carlson Marketing Group booked four groups of 250 employees for GE Capital two years ago. Each group, flown in from Singapore by chartered aircraft, stayed four nights. Other corporate clients have included Northern Telecom, Lincoln National Life and BMW Canada.

Jacobs projected that the Jimbaran Bay property is going to sell from 10 to 12 percent of its room nights this year to incentive groups and, based on current bookings, the corporate mix in 1997 will jump even higher.

Opened three years ago, the $70 million Four Seasons resort includes 147 one- and two-bedroom villas spread out over a 35-acre site overlooking Jimbaran Bay. Each unit features a plunge pool, sundeck, air-conditioned sleeping pavilion and open-sided living and dining area.

One-bedroom rates for 1997 are $475. Two-bedroom units go for $1,100, and the Royal Villas cost $2,200 a day.

Despite the far-flung location, an incentive trip can compete in price with many more familiar and closer destinations, Jacobs said. "Accommodations, amenities and entertainment probably cost half what they are in the U.S. or Europe," he said.

Incentives also are big business at the 750-room Grand Hyatt Bali. Out of the 68 Hyatt International properties worldwide, the one on Bali's lush Nusa Dua peninsula is ranked the chain's top incentive destination, said Richard White, director of sales and marketing, North America.

The property last year experienced a 22 percent corporate mix, double the ratio just three years before, White noted.

At the 390-room Bali Hyatt in Sanura Beach, incentives represent 15 percent of room nights, said Becky Alonso, director of marketing for both Hyatt properties here.

White cited several U.S. companies that have held incentive programs at both hotels in the past year, including Sun Micro Systems, Hewlett-Packard, Surety Life Insurance, Lincoln Benefit Life Insurance, McDonnell Douglas and Oracle. "Silicon Valley and San Francisco are among our biggest customer bases," he said.

Incentive groups also have been visiting the 263-room Sheraton Laguna Hotel and the adjoining 262-room Sheraton Nusa Indah Resort for the past five years, according to director of sales and marketing Jim Papineau.

"Incentives are a very important segment of our business," said Papineau, explaining that they account for some 10 percent of room nights, primarily at the Nusa Indah property. The two properties recently hosted Australian-based Ford and McDonalds executives, as well as GE Asia and Oracle.

Sheraton also owns and manages the Bali Convention Center, which, Papineau said, is the only convention center at a resort destination in Asia.