Indonesia’s Tourism Grows Strongly with Rising Foreign Arrivals

RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta – Indonesia’s tourism sector recorded strong and broad-based growth throughout 2025, driven by rising foreign tourist arrivals and robust domestic travel, the Minister of Tourism Widiyanti Putri Wardhana said during a working meeting with Commission VII of the Indonesian House of Representatives at the Parliament Complex in Jakarta on Wednesday (21/01/2026).

Tourism Minister Widiyanti revealed that based on data from Central Statistics Indonesia (BPS), international tourist arrivals reached 13.98 million visits between January and November 2025.

“This figure represents a year-on-year growth of 10.44 percent. In the same period of 2024, foreign tourist arrivals stood at 12.66 million visits,” Widiyanti said, as quoted in an official statement.

She explained that approximately 72 percent of total foreign arrivals originated from key priority markets targeted by the Ministry of Tourism. Malaysia emerged as the largest contributor, accounting for around 17 percent of total foreign tourist visits.

Looking ahead, Widiyanti projected that following the final tabulation by BPS in February 2026, total foreign tourist arrivals for the full year of 2025 are expected to reach 15.3 million visits, exceeding the government’s target of 15 million as set in the National Government Work Plan (RKP).

According to the minister, the increase in international arrivals serves as a major driver of national tourism foreign exchange earnings. She added that the achievement reflects two important aspects: Indonesia’s growing appeal and competitiveness among global travelers, and the potential strengthening of the tourism sector’s balance in a sustainable manner.

On the domestic front, Widiyanti noted that between January and November 2025, domestic tourist trips reached 1.09 billion journeys, surpassing the target of 1.08 billion and marking the highest figure ever recorded.

“This demonstrates the strong resilience of domestic tourism, which continues to serve as the backbone of Indonesia’s tourism sector,” she said.

In terms of employment, the tourism sector absorbed 25.91 million workers throughout 2025. As a result, the Ministry of Tourism of Indonesia remains committed to strengthening human resources as the foundation of tourism development.

“We believe human resources are at the core of tourism development. Therefore, we are not only focused on increasing workforce numbers, but also on improving quality through training programs, certification, and competency development,” Widiyanti stated.

Building on these achievements, the ministry has pledged to continue and strengthen its flagship programs in 2026. Key priorities include enhancing travel safety, developing tourism villages, promoting quality tourism, strengthening the Event by Indonesia program, and implementing Tourism 5.0, with a focus this year on digitizing event licensing.

In the area of institutional and human resource development, the ministry targets facilitating competency-based training and certification for 1,900 participants, while soft skills, managerial skills, and sustainable tourism training programs are expected to reach 2,090 participants across 38 provinces. In addition, vocational education at six Tourism Polytechnics is projected to produce 2,950 graduates.

Responding to the presentation, Chair of Commission VII Saleh Partaonan Daulay encouraged the Ministry of Tourism to continue preparing substantive programs that deliver tangible economic benefits to communities.

“We hope every program implemented will generate broad impact, as the state budget is a fundamental instrument of development aimed at improving public welfare,” he said.