JEMBRANA, DEWATA.NEWS – Traffic leaving Bali through Gilimanuk Port increased sharply on Friday (March 13), with travelers facing long queues of up to five hours as the number of vehicles heading to Java continued to rise ahead of the upcoming Nyepi holiday period.
Port authorities reported that the surge was particularly noticeable among passenger cars and motorcycles, creating significant congestion in the port area throughout the morning.
Several travelers said they had been stuck in line since early morning while waiting to board ferries crossing to Ketapang Port in Banyuwangi, East Java.
“The queue stopped moving around 4 a.m., and it has only been moving slowly. Until now we still haven’t crossed,” said Wawan, a traveler from Banyuwangi who was still waiting near Pier MB 3 at around 10:00 WITA.
Another traveler, Nanang from Jember, said he had been in the queue since about 05:00 WITA. He entered the port area around 08:00 WITA but was still waiting in the parking area to board a ferry as of 11:00 WITA.
“It has been six hours and we still haven’t crossed,” he said.
Didi Juliansyah, Business Manager at ASDP Gilimanuk Port, said the number of travelers leaving Bali is expected to continue rising in the coming days due to school and work holidays, particularly among informal workers returning to their hometowns.
“The number of travelers is increasing every day and will continue to rise until it reaches its peak,” he said.
Port data from Thursday (March 11) showed that within a 24-hour period, a total of 32,393 passengers traveled through the port either on foot or inside vehicles.
During the same period, 10,232 vehicles crossed through Gilimanuk Port. The vehicles included 4,933 motorcycles, 2,638 passenger cars, 361 buses, and 2,300 trucks.
Authorities have advised travelers to plan their departure schedules carefully to avoid heavy congestion during the peak travel period and ahead of the temporary closure of ferry crossings during Nyepi Day.
According to port projections, the outbound travel peak at Gilimanuk Port is expected between Sunday (March 15) and Monday (March 16).
To manage the increasing number of vehicles, smaller cars and motorcycles have been redirected to the Gilimanuk Cargo parking area before entering the port through residential access roads leading toward the ferry terminal.