Sitting to the east of the mainland in the Indian Ocean, the Indonesian island of Bali has for years earned conflicting associations with both luxury travel — Bali is home to dozens of luxury resorts from names like Ritz Carlton, Four Seasons, and Ayana, as well as countless million-dollar villas — and cheap beach holidays.
Particularly popular with tourists from Australia, New Zealand, and nearby Asian countries, an island that has a permanent population of 4 million saw 6.3 million foreign tourist arrivals in 2024.
As international tourism picked up over the last year, especially to specific popular destinations, this number marks an increase of more than 20% from 2023.
In the last decade, the island has also dealt with an increase of bad behavior spurred by mass tourism — something that some local lawmakers have vowed to crack down on.
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‘This will make Bali safer': Lawmaker calls for more tourist deportations
“If we were abroad and got into a fight, we would immediately be deported,” Balinese legislative council Deputy Chairman Komang Nova Sewi Putra said in an interview with the South China Morning Post. “Why isn't this enforced in Bali? Once caught, deport them. This will make Bali safer.”
Putra provided legislative council statistics showing that the most common crimes committed by tourists in Bali include theft, traffic violations, and conducting business while on a tourist visa.
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Last spring, Bali Governor I Wayan Koster signed an updated version of visitor regulations to specify the need for “modest and respectful clothing” in places of worship and appropriate behavior in public.
The updated regulations also specify that tourists who do not pay the fee of IDR 150,000 (approximately $9 USD) that Bali charges foreign visitors upon arrival can be denied entrance to certain popular attractions.
‘As things change, we need to adapt': Bali Governor
“We issued a similar regulation before, but as things change, we need to adapt,” Koster said in March 2025. “This ensures that Bali's tourism remains respectful, sustainable, and in harmony with our local values.”
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Koster previously gave interviews in which he said foreign tourists caught being “naughty will be immediately dealt with firmly.”
“Bali is a beautiful, sacred island, and we expect our guests to show the same respect that we extend to them,” he told the local Bali Sun in March.
Portugal is another country that has recently made moves to crack down on inappropriate tourist behavior. The popular resort town of Albufeira introduced a fine of €1,500 (roughly $1,768 USD) for those who do not wear proper clothing outside of a certain distance from a beach.
The public order code, tweaked after a string of resident complaints, prohibits “remaining or moving around in a state of partial nudity” that is defined as “swimwear: bikini, trikini, swimsuit and similar, shorts and underwear.” It has been presented to local council for voting but not yet passed.
The amendments were proposed after a video of eight British men dancing naked in a bar on Albufeira’s party strip went viral and caused outcry across the country.
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