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The Rebirth of Bali

STUMBLING down Legian Street on Bali on a humid Tuesday night, Tim Picken had a buddy on one arm and a beer on the other. He poked his head into a T-shirt shop, shared a joke about the cheap prices and flirted with the passers-by. Then, before he ducked into another bar along this neon-and-booze strip in Kuta, Mr. Picken stopped laughing for a few moments, just long enough to pay his respects.

No wider than a tennis court and no longer than a bowling alley, the site, at the headwaters of the bustling street, was littered with weeds and easy to miss.

There were no flowers, no official tributes. There was just a wooden sign, in Bahasa Bali, warning visitors not to trespass. As if anyone would dance on a grave.

"It was mostly Australians my age who died," said Mr. Picken, 29, a real estate agent visiting from Melbourne, as he glanced at the unkempt plot of land. As he leaned in, the bubbly hook of Outkast's "Hey Ya!" echoed down the narrow street. "My parents told me to avoid crowded bars, but you can't stop living your life."

More than two years after terrorist bombs pierced the touristy heart of Bali along its southern coast -- killing 202 people and prompting headlines proclaiming "Paradise Lost" -- a carefree spirit has finally returned to this tropical jewel, famous for its emerald landscapes, Hindu aura and perennial spring break vibe. So, too, have the crowds.

In an unmistakable sign that Bali is recovering, nearly 1.5 million people visited the island in 2004, a 47 percent jump from the year before. According to Bali tourism officials, some 40,000 Americans traveled halfway around the globe to experience the island's slow-cooked charms, a 40 percent gain from 2003.

Signs of Bali's upswing are everywhere, from the surfer-mobbed breaks along Kuta Beach on the southwestern coast, to the traffic tie-ups leaving Ngurah Rai International Airport. Hotels that were nearly mothballed are now booked solid.

"We had a 75 percent occupancy rate last summer," Monty Brown, the manager for Aman Resort's three properties in the island, said in a recent interview. "The year before, it was 25 percent."

Not only is Bali rebounding but it is also re-emerging with a high-end gloss that belies its reputation as a backpacker's nirvana. Luxury hotels with lotus-shaped pools and teak-lined restaurants are going up while old ones are renovating their way to more stars. Fancy restaurants, first-class spas and hip nightclubs have all cropped up in the last year, adding new spice to a scene that, not long ago, bordered on stale.

"It was a banner year for Bali," said David Wilson, the general manager at the Ritz-Carlton, in Jimbaran, while conducting a tour of the hotel's 38 new luxury villas, nearly all of which had been booked for the New Year holidays. He said he expected 2005 to be even better.

"There was never a wait-and-see period," he added. "We were always confident that Bali would bounce back."

On a balmy Friday night in early January, the crooked sidewalks of Kuta glistened after a light shower. Shopkeepers tidied up their sarong displays. Bar owners dimmed the lights. As midnight approached, a steady stream of partygoers in their 20's and 30's emerged from their hotel rooms with expectant looks on their faces, ready to hit the next hot spot.

At Fuel, a five-month-old restaurant that opened next door to the bomb site, the crowd was as glossy as a magazine ad. Women in strappy sandals sipped cosmopolitans. Men in tight shirts primped in front of the mirror. Not long ago, the space was abandoned by a store that had sold bootleg D.V.D.'s and pooka shells. Now it's a happening spot with minimalist décor and swirling psychedelic lights.

"It's a great location," said an owner, Gusky Suarsana, trying his best to sound apologetic. "The area is going upscale."

Patrons were laughing and dancing, seemingly oblivious to the tragic landmark next door. Perhaps enough time had past. Or perhaps they were lost in holiday merriment.

But vestiges of terrorism are unavoidable, looming over the tropical oasis like a stalled monsoon. At the Four Seasons Resort in Jimbaran, guests are now greeted at the gatehouse with AK-47 rifles and undercarriage checks. At the McDonald's on Kuta Beach, night watchmen keep close tabs at all hours, even when the crowd thins to a drunken few. And during the Christmas and New Year rush, the police were out in full force, rummaging through trash cans, delivery trucks and fanny packs. Australia had issued yet another terrorist warning, as had Britain, New Zealand and the United States.

The attacks occurred just after 11 p.m. on Oct. 12, 2002, a busy Saturday night. A bomb linked to Al Qaeda ripped through Paddy's Bar, a popular nightclub on Legian Street, in the bopping tourist district of Kuta. The location was no accident. It was as if the blast tore through the Ramblas in Barcelona or Times Square in New York.

Half a minute later, a more powerful car bomb exploded across the street, creating a three-foot-deep crater outside the Sari Club and trapping hundreds in a disco inferno. Many of the dead -- including 88 Australians, 38 Indonesians, 26 Britons and 7 Americans -- had been fleeing the first blast. The Balinese call it their ground zero.

Tourism, the economic soul of Bali, sank like a stone. Waves of storefronts went dark, hotel employees were laid off en masse, and airlines scaled back flights to Bali before abandoning the destination altogether. "The whole of Bali emptied out," recalled Jamal Hussain, the general manager of the Hard Rock Hotel Bali, one of the many Western icons that remain on high alert.

If that weren't enough, SARS arrived the next year, devastating tourism throughout Asia. Then terrorism struck again, this time in the Indonesia capital of Jakarta. A bomb-laden S.U.V. rocked a Marriott hotel in the central business district. Then last September, a car bomb exploded at the nearby Australian Embassy, killing 11.

Both attacks have been linked to Jemaah Islamiyah, the same Al Qaeda offshoot that is suspected as being responsible for the Bali blasts.

Yet, despite all these potentially crippling blows, Bali climbed back. A sprawling, 313-room Conrad hotel opened last year in the southern peninsula of Nusa Dua. COMO Hotel and Resorts opened up a boutique hotel, Uma Ubud, in the jungles of the Tjampuhan Valley. Accor Hotels opened the Sofitel Seminyak Bali last November, and plans to open another hotel in May.

"It's a signal that companies are still optimistic about investing in Bali," said Robert Kelsall, chairman of the Bali Hotels Association, which represents the island's major chains.

And then there is the latest resort from Bulgari, the Italian jeweler, perched on an exquisite limestone cliff at Bali's southernmost tip. Although the hotel is not expected to open until the end of the year, fashionistas are already chattering about what the second outpost of this boutique hotelier (the other is in Milan) will look like when it is done.

Bali even has a new airline, Air Paradise International, which recently inaugurated service to a fifth city in Australia, to go with thrice-weekly flights to Osaka, Japan, and Seoul.

Ask tourists why they returned and two answers usually emerge.

"This is one of the most beautiful places I've been to," said Cherie Sogsti, 33, a travel blogger from Garden Grove, Calif., as she toured the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary, a woodsy reserve in central Bali teeming with wild macaques. "It seems almost mystical and magical."

The breathtaking topography still captivates tourists the way it did in the 1930's, when Westerners first promoted Bali as a vacationer's paradise. The former Dutch territory was a colonial playground for the Netherlands Indies, which extended from Indonesia to Malaysia.

Tucked below the equator on the Indian Ocean, the high temperature hovers around 85 degrees year round, and cools gradually as you move inland. Strolling along Kuta Beach on a recent evening, as the last whiskers of sunlight scorched the dusky sky, the air felt sultry and pacific, hugging the ground like an earthy blanket.

The island is ringed by velvety beaches and marbled cliffs. Dewy jungles and black volcanic peaks form its center. Terraced rice patties, the color of fresh lime, are etched into the countryside like giant amphitheaters. The air is expansive, the vistas ageless.

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Visitors also speak wistfully about Bali's idiosyncratic culture. Unlike the rest of Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation, most Balinese practice a form of Hinduism that blends elements of Buddhism and animism. They believe that gods are everywhere. And, in a way, they are.

Sculptures depicting mythical battles loom over traffic circles like the Arc de Triomphe. Thousands of temples dot the island, their split gateways forming a kind of Escher-like portal into a cosmic world. Every morning, millions of boat-shaped banana leaves, stuffed with rice, fruits and flowers, are left on sidewalks like little gift baskets to the gods.

A leisurely drive through the winding backcountry reveals a simple life steeped in atavistic rituals. Men bathe together in the crystalline rivers, soaking and relaxing in Bali's original spa. Women in floor-length skirts dry tapioca on the roadside, stirring the granules under the baking sun. Slaughtered chickens hang off the back of mopeds. Banyan trees sway. And every few hours, the ethereal tones of gamelan music echo across the lush hills, signaling the start of another temple ceremony.

This reverence for Hindu customs may explain why decades of mass tourism has done little to dilute the island's charm.

"Everyone smiles all the time," said Melinda Gavala, 28, a frequent visitor from Greece, as she watched the sun set on Seminyak Beach, an upscale area just north of Kuta. "Even when they're overcharging you, their smile is 100 percent authentic."

But Bali's resilience is also a function of modern day P.R. As one of the world's best-known beach resorts, Bali never faded from tourists' imagination after the bombings. In fact, the Bali tourism board did little more than offer a few junkets for travel writers and tour operators, which most resort destinations do anyway. (The New York Times does not accept free trips.)

"The island succeeds in spite of itself," said Jack Daniels, president of Bali Discovery Tours, which runs a tourism news Web site. "Bali has tremendous brand equity. Even through the crisis, travel magazines kept naming Bali among the top island destinations."

But contrary to post-bombing predictions by tour operators, "terrorist attacks have a very short-term consequence on tourism," said Rok Klancnik, a spokesman for the World Tourism Organization, a United Nations agency based in Madrid. And it seems to be getting shorter.

"It took Luxor, Egypt, five long years to recover from its terrorist attacks," Mr. Klancnik added, referring to the 1997 massacre of 58 foreigners by Islamic militants in an ancient temple. New York City saw tourism levels rebound two years after the 2001 attacks, and Madrid's were back to normal within months of the 2004 train bombing.

"It will probably take Bali just another year to fully recover," Mr. Klancnik said.

But scars will remain, appearing like unwelcome party guests. Bomb-sniffing dogs, stone-faced guards and airport-style metal detectors are all part of the new normal. (The State Department continues to warn Americans "of the continued potential for terrorist attacks against Americans, U.S. or other Western interests in Indonesia.") And the economic slump of the previous two years has lent an air of desperation to the aggressive touting.

On sunny afternoons, a crush of peddlers turn stretches of Kuta Beach into a seaside flea market. In quieter spots, sunbathers are accosted by an almost comical parade of hawkers selling sunglasses, box kites, tattoos, beer, jewelry and full-body massages -- sometimes all of them in just half an hour. Street begging got so out of hand that the police had to institute a crackdown.

The makeup of tourists has changed as well. Although Bali welcomed visitors from 177 countries last year, the tourism surge came primarily from Australia and Asian countries, especially Japan.

"We haven't recovered the Western European or North American market," said Mr. Daniels of Bali Discovery Tours. "It takes four Japanese tourists to equal one German in terms of total number of days and money spent."

While Kuta and other tourist meccas are bustling, remote regions are struggling. In upcountry Ubud, the island's cultural hub, art galleries have closed and a shadow puppet show was eerily empty on a Wednesday night in January.

Farther afield, in the eastern resort town of Candi Dasa, no one was shopping for roadside wood carvings on a clear afternoon. "We haven't seen any tourists," said Hans Peter Keller, an architect from Switzerland, who was lounging by an empty hotel pool.

But even in the busier places, many of the tourists relish the relative tranquillity. Bob Walker, 34, a firefighter from England, was drinking alone at Fuel, the new hot spot on Legian Street. It was his first visit to the island and already he was hooked.

"If you want to get drunk, there's no shortage of bars," he said. "If you like girls, there's plenty of them. And if you like surfing, nothing beats Bali."

Someone had just told him about a secluded surfing spot on Bali's west coast. "I'm going to extend my trip for another month," he said. "I feel safe here."

A PARADISE REBOUNDS FROM A HELLISH TIME

The State Department has an official Travel Warning about "the ongoing terrorist threat for Indonesia." It urges American visitors to register with the consular agent in Bali, at (62-361) 233-605. More information is online at travel.state.gov/travel.

GETTING THERE

There are no direct flights between Bali and the United States. Singapore Airlines, (800) 742-3333, www.singaporeair.com, has daily connections via Singapore from New York City, Newark, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. Round-trip coach fares from Kennedy Airport (with a layover in Frankfurt) are around $1,200. Flights from Newark start at $1,550.

Cathay Pacific, (800) 233-2742, www.cathaypacific.com, flies to Bali via Hong Kong from New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Web fares for mid-April start at $923 from Los Angeles and $1,150 from J.F.K.

Other airlines flying from New York to Bali include Korean Air (through Seoul), (800) 438-5000, www.koreanair.com; and Japan Airlines (via Tokyo or Osaka), (800) 525-3663, www.japanair.com.

WHERE TO STAY

Lodging choices range from $5 budget hostels with bunk beds and no air-conditioning to over-the-top suites fit for a sheik, starting at $3,000. For $100 to $150 a night, many places offer spas, courtyards and meandering pools. The Bali Hotels Associations, which represents the island's larger chains, has online links to its members at www.balihotelsassociation.com. Here is a sampling of choices on the island:

Amanusa, Nusa Dua (62-361) 772-333, amanresorts.com. A minimalist temple to Balinese architecture, it rents 33 villas perched on a hillside overlooking the Indian Ocean. A private path leads to a secluded beach. Suites are $650 for a garden view, and $1,300 for one with a private pool.

Cendana Resort and Spa, Monkey Forest Road, Ubud, (62-361) 973-243, www.cendanaresort-spa.com. Close to art galleries and artisanal villages, the hotel is a homey base to explore Bali's culture. Doubles start at $70 for a room with air-conditioning.

Hotel Padma, Padma 1, Legian, (62-361) 752-111, www.hotelpadma.com. Just north of Kuta, the 405-room hotel features spacious rooms, a swim-up bar and several restaurants. Popular with young couples and wedding parties. Web rates start at $110 for a standard room.

The Oberoi Bali, Seminyak, (62-361) 730-361, www.oberoihotels.com. Right on the beach, the hotel offers a surprisingly tranquil setting not farfrom the bustle of Kuta. The 75 thatched lanais and villas start at $255, but Internet rates can be less.

Villa Sasoon, Jalan Puri Bagus, Candi Dasa, (62-363) 41511, www.villasasoon.com. The four two-bedroom pavilions offer a modern spin on traditional Balinese homes, with pebbled courtyards, open living rooms and outdoor showers. Rates are $250, including breakfast.

ONLINE GUIDES

The Internet is rife with unreliable Bali guides, but a good starting point is Bali Discovery Tours, www.balidiscovery.com, which offers a hotel search function, travel tips and news, and last-minute specials. Another trustworthy, if less in-depth source is the Bali Tourism Board, www.bali-tourismboard.com. DENNY LEE

DENNY LEE writes for the Escapes section of The Times.

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A version of this article appears in print on March 27, 2005, on Page 5005001 of the National edition with the headline: The Rebirth of Bali. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe