Indonesia welcomed approximately 1 million+ visitors in October 2024, reaching 89% of the levels in 2019.

Indonesia

The year-to-date visitor arrivals recorded 11.5 million, an 82% completion rate towards the annual target of 14 million. Bali’s Ngurah Rai Airport is the most popular point of entry, accounting for 46% of total visitors, followed by Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta Airport (18%). Asof October 2024, the year-to-date visitor arrivals to Bali surpassed its performance in 2019, amid challenges of overtourism.

The newly installed Tourism Ministry announced its 5-year plan to enhance Indonesia’s tourism offerings, especially the five priority destinations, including Lake Toba in North Sumatra, Borobudur Temple in Central Java, Mandalike on Lombok, Labuan Bajo on the Island of Flores, and Likupang in North Sulawesi. The Ministry also plans to secure “quality international tourists” through overseas promotional activities.

To avoid overcrowding in Bali, the 3B tourism package has also been launched to promote diverse attractions in less busy areas of Banyuwangi, West Bali, and North Bali. At the same time, the government plans to ban new construction of hotels in Bali for the next few years, hoping to curb over development on the island.

Philippines

With an annual target of 7.7 million foreign visitors, a total of 5.35 million foreign visitors to the Philippines was recorded from January through November 2024. South Korea was the largest feeder market, accounting for 26.8%, followed by the USA with 15.7% and Japan with 6.6%. The weak performance of the Chinese economy together with the geopolitical tensions softened demand from China, resulting in fewer travellers than expected.

It is unlikely that the official annual visitor goal will be achieved, but the country constantly works on diversified strategies, amid the soft demand from China. Cebu Pacific introduced new routes between Manila and Chiang Mai but reduced flights to China. At the same time, the Department of Tourism recently announced the VAT refund for single transactions over P3,000 ($51) for foreign tourists, increasing the attractiveness for shoppers.

South Korea

With over 1.6 million foreign visitors in October 2024, South Korea sees a strong recovery of inbound tourism, close to its performance in 2019. The government further extends K-ETA (electronic travel authorization) to citizens from 67 eligible countries, including its key feeder markets, Hong Kong, Japan,and Taiwan, until the end of 2025. Once the largest feeder market, Chinese travellers are still required to obtain a visa prior to their arrival, despite the visa-free policy for Korean travellers to China.

While inbound tourism in Korea is booming, the travel deficit remains, as Koreans’ spending on overseas trips grows. As of October 2024, spending by outbound travellers reached $22.3 billion, while inbound tourism revenue only recorded about $13.8 billion. The number of outbound Korean travellers was also close to the levels in 2019, recording 23.6 million outbound travellers as of October 2024.

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