Bali Welcomes 1.4 Million Foreign Tourists in First Quarter of 2026

RRI.CO.ID, Denpasar - Bali’s tourism industry continues its steady climb, welcoming more than 1.4 million foreign visitors during the first three months of 2026. Data from the Bali Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS) shows that cumulative international arrivals from January to March reached 1,466,546, marking a 1.04 percent increase compared to the same period in 2025.

Head of BPS Bali, Agus Gede Hendrayana Hermawan, noted that while the overall quarterly trend remains positive, the monthly trajectory has shown unusual shifts. During a press conference in Denpasar on Tuesday, May 5, 2026, he explained that current patterns differ slightly from previous years.

The monthly data for March 2026 showed 472,070 direct arrivals, a 4.11 percent decline compared to February. This downward trend from January through March contrasts with 2024, which saw consistent growth, and 2025, which experienced fluctuations.

“There is a slight difference in patterns over the last three years in 2026 the trend is actually decreasing from January to February to March, hopefully in the following months there will be an increase and the geopolitical situation returns to normal,” Agus Gede said, as quoted by Antara.

Several factors influenced the March figures, including holiday schedules and flight cancellations linked to ongoing Middle East conflicts. However, the arrival of luxury cruise ships at Benoa Port provided a necessary boost to the month's visitor count.

Australia remains the primary engine for Bali’s tourism industry, contributing over a quarter of all international visitors in March alone. Key highlights from the first quarter show that Australia led the market with 354,079 total visits, representing a 5.76 percent increase year-on-year.

China followed with 157,242 visits, marking a significant growth of 20.22 percent, while India recorded a slight dip of 0.25 percent with a total of 116,943 travelers. In contrast, arrivals from South Korea saw a sharper decline of 13.32 percent with 68,873 visits, and the United Kingdom also experienced a decrease of 4.76 percent, totaling 63,364 visits for the quarter.

In March alone, Australian arrivals spiked by 20.35 percent compared to February, while Chinese arrivals plummeted by 58.79 percent. Agus Gede attributed the Chinese decline to a market correction following the high-volume Lunar New Year celebrations in February.

"The decline was quite significant, perhaps because February was the Chinese New Year celebration, so the number of Chinese tourists arriving was relatively high, and then it returned to normal in March," he explained.

Despite the slight monthly cooling, Western markets showed resilience in March. Arrivals from the United Kingdom rose by 25.32 percent, while the United States saw a significant jump of 37.05 percent.

“So the proportion from Australia is very dominant at 25.37 percent, or more than a quarter of foreign tourists coming to Bali were from Australia for last March,” Agus Gede concluded.

With over 1.4 million arrivals already recorded, local authorities remain optimistic that the upcoming peak season will stabilize the market and continue the island's recovery. ***