REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak and his family are vacationing in Bali during the current Idul Fitri Islamic holiday season.

They stayed at the St Regis Nusa Dua Hotel, which was also the preferred location of stay for Saudi King Salman bin Abdulazis Al Saud while holidaying in Bali Island last March, Anak Agung Yuniartha Putra, head of the Bali tourism office, noted in a statement, here, Wednesday. 

The Malaysian leader and his family arrived on Monday and were greeted by Bali Governor I Made Mangku Pastika and Bali Police Chief Inspector General Petrus Golose as well as other local high-ranking officials.

Najib also stayed in the same room that was rented by the Saudi King. The room, especially designed for VVIPs, has an ocean view.

Meanwhile, Indonesian Tourism Minister Arief Yahya said the visit by the Malaysian prime minister in Bali for a vacation could serve as a positive endorsement to attract Malaysian tourists.

"Alhamdulillah (Thanks God), Prime Minister Najib has chosen Bali. Thank you, Mr Najib," he remarked.

The number of Malaysian tourists visiting Indonesia has decreased lately, from 1.43 million in 2013, to 1.27 million in 2014, or down 10 percent, 1.24 million in 2015, or a decrease of 2.26 percent.

Last year, some 1.18 million Malaysians had visited Indonesia, and this year, the government has set a target of attracting at least 1.3 million tourists from Malaysia.

Minister Yahya is optimistic that Prime Minister Razak's visit would receive media coverage and help promote Indonesia's tourism.

Bali remains a favorite tourist destination, but Indonesia has also offered other destinations to foreign tourists.

The tourism minister views countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and Asia in general as a potential market for the country's tourism industry owing to the geographical proximity. 

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