Tourists, on whom 80% of households depend, were flooding back. Until yesterday Bali was on target to record the highest number of annual overseas visitors since October 2002, when 28 Britons were among the dead. It had hoped to rebound to pre-blast tourist levels by the end of next year.

The return of the bombers yesterday shattered that dream and the impact on tourism, on which Bali so much depends, will be severe.

In the island’s tourist heyday, visitors brought £1.5 billion a year to the Indonesian isle, which is a magnet for people from all over the world seeking an idyllic tropical holiday.

The balmy air, spiced and sweetened with clove, frangipani flowers and incense, attracts couples seeking romantic breaks while the techno beat emanating from the nightclubs and bars along Kuta’s entertainment strip makes it a haven for the twentysomethings.

Before the bombs in 2002 Bali attracted up to 2.5m visitors a year. In their aftermath, tourism crashed. The island suffered a 43% loss of income between October 2002 and May 2003. Almost a third of the schools saw their pupil numbers fall, a sign that parents needed their children at home to help to supplement the family income.

Australians, the biggest single group of overseas tourists, were the first to return, followed by the Japanese. Britons started heading back there in big numbers after the Foreign Office cancelled its cautionary note advising against anything other than essential travel in July 2004.

“People do not like being held to ransom in paradise.

The raising of the travel advisory acted as a catalyst,” said the general manager of one five-star resort.

Bali recorded 1.46m foreign tourists last year and was expecting to have at least 1.6m this year, of whom about 120,000 would have been British. The British market share of visitors to the island was 9% before the 2002 blasts but dropped to below 3% in 2003.

However, Bali benefited from being unscathed in last December’s tsunami. This spring, occupancy rates in the most expensive hotels reached 60%, double what they were in in 2003. The island recorded its millionth visitor of the year in August and was gearing up for the peak season in December and January.

Accommodation on the island varies from luxury resort hotels with 24-hour butler service to backpacker hostels. In one resort hotel last month about 62% of the guests were Europeans.

Jimbaran, where yesterday two bombs blasted beach cafes, is an upmarket resort about 15 minutes’ drive from Ngurah Rai international airport. It is well known for its five-star accommodation and beach restaurants.

The most expensive hotels ferry in their guests by helicopter and the beaches around the bay are famous for their seafood restaurants.

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