PETALING JAYA, MALAYSIA: Promotional free tickets for AirAsia's new direct route from Bali to Perth were snapped up within hours of them being made available for booking.

However, seats for AirAsia's first route to Australia from Indonesia are still available from as low as RM364 (SGD152.23) till May 10 for the travel period July 17 till Jan 31 next year.

The new route will be serviced by AirAsia Indonesia, an associate of AirAsia, and is the airline's fifth international route operating from the Bali hub.

AirAsia Indonesia chief executive officer Dharmadi said Bali was the driving force behind Indonesia's tourism economy and that the new route would also improve educational ties.

"Education is the main drive for closer Indonesia-Australia ties with approximately 19,000 Indonesian students studying in various parts of Australia.

"There are also large Indonesian communities living in Perth, so we expect this new route will do well," Dharmidi added.

AirAsia will utilise its A320 aircraft to service the four-hour long flight which will fly daily return flights from Denpasar to Perth.

-The Star/Asia News Network