Arnoldus Kristianus, Jakarta – The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) reported that foreign tourist arrivals had seen an 8.57 percent drop in October compared to the previous month.

In October, Indonesia welcomed 978,500 foreign tourist arrivals, versus the 1.07 million foreigners recorded the previous month. This also marks the second-sharpest decline in 2023.

"But October's foreign tourist arrivals represent a 33.27 percent growth year-on-year," Edy Mahmud, a deputy at the BPS, told a press briefing.

Throughout January-October 2023, Indonesia has attracted 9.49 million foreign tourists, up by 124.3 percent from the same period last year. Despite the significant growth, it still failed to surpass the pre-pandemic levels.

About 845,150 foreign tourists arrived at the major entry gates, while 133,350 others passed through Indonesia's borders. As many as 707,580 foreign travelers visited Indonesia by plane. BPS data shows 114,020 foreigners came to Indonesia by sea transport. About 23,540 foreigners arrived in the Southeast Asian country by land travel.

The foreign travelers who visited Indonesia in Oct. 2023 mostly came from close neighbors Malaysia, Australia, and Singapore. The average foreign traveler stayed for 7.76 nights.

The nationwide occupancy rate in starred hotels stood at 53.02 percent in Oct. 2023. Starred hotels in East Kalimantan recorded an occupancy rate of 62.39 percent. BPS attributed this trend to government officials visiting East Kalimantan to check on the new capital project Nusantara, among others.

Source: https://jakartaglobe.id/lifestyle/foreign-tourist-arrivals-drop-857-pct-in-octobe