Foreign tourist arrivals in RI increases

JAKARTA. The number of international tourists arriving in Indonesia in January and February this year reached 1,455,745, up by 12.61 percent from 1,292,743 in the same period last year.

“The trend is quite good, and it is hoped that it will rise further in the coming months so that we can achieve - or even possibly exceed - our target of between 9.3 million and 9.4 million foreign tourist arrivals for the year,” Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Mari Elka Pangestu said in Jakarta on Tuesday, as quoted by Antara.

She said the increase was much higher than growth throughout 2013, which stood at only 9.4 percent. According to official data, the number of foreign tourists arriving from month to month had fluctuated, she added.

Foreign tourist arrivals in February, for instance, stood at 702,666. “Compared to foreign tourist arrivals in January, which reached 753,079, the figure saw a 6.6 percent decline,” Mari said.

“But if we compare it to the number of foreign tourist arrivals in February 2013, namely 678,415, this year’s February figure was higher by 3.57 percent. So overall, the number of foreign tourist arrivals has gone up,” she went on.

The minister said tourism would continue to face a number of challenges throughout 2014, especially the ongoing eruptions of Mount Kelud and Mount Sinabung.

Several airports, which are the main gateways for foreign visitors to Indonesia, were forced to close for several days due to lack of visibility caused by thick volcanic ash following the eruptions. The airports included Adisutjipto airport in Yogyakarta; Adi Soemarmo airport in Surakarta; Ahmad Yani airport in Semarang; Husein Sastranegara airport in Bandung, and Juanda airport in Surabaya.

Mari said several international events in February, including the Indonesia Fashion Week and Java Jazz Festival, had also helped to attract more foreign tourists.

Increased seat capacity on direct-flight routes from overseas countries to Indonesia had also supported the growth in foreign tourist numbers, she added. (ebf)