Jakarta – Statistics Indonesia (BPS) has revealed that tourist arrivals hit 1.27 million in February, 6.12 percent higher than the 1.20 million recorded in the same month in 2018. Meanwhile, in January, tourist arrivals grew 4.80 percent year-on-year.
BPS head Suhariyanto said Malaysia sent the most tourists to Indonesia, followed by China, Singapore, Timor Leste and Australia. "Malaysia contributed 275,288 tourists. We hope that the tourist industry will spur economic growth," he said.
Cumulatively, arrivals in January and February were recorded at 2.48 million, a growth of 8.19 percent from the 2.30 million tourist arrivals in the corresponding period last year.
BPS data show that the occupancy rate of star-rated hotels in February 2019 was 52.44 percent, a decline of 3.77 percent compared to the occupancy rate in February 2018 of 56.21 percent. Meanwhile, the occupancy rate of hotels in January 2019 declined by 0.97 percent year-on-year.
The average length of stay of tourists at star-rated hotels was 1.93 days in February, an increase of 0.01 days compared to the same month in 2018.
Indonesia previously set a target to welcome 20 million tourists this year. Last year, a total of 15.81 million tourists visited the country. (bbn)