Indonesia`s participation in the event was a result of the Tourism Ministry`s collaboration with 18 tourism business players and the Indonesian Embassy in London, said Agustini Rahayu from the Indonesian Tourism Ministry here on Sunday.
Agustini Rahayu, deputy assistant of the Indonesian Tourism Promotion for Europe, said that Indonesia`s sales mission at this year`s WTM was aimed at optimizing the related parties` collective efforts to lure more foreign tourists.
The WTM London provides the participating countries with a great chance to expose and promote their culture and favorite tourist destinations to tens of thousands of visitors from the travel industry.
The sales mission engaging 18 tourism business players from Indonesia, including travel agents, and 40 British business counterparts is expected to strengthen cooperation between them, and improve the British people`s awareness of Indonesia`s tourism sector.
"We push more business cooperation for increasing the number of British tourists coming to Indonesia," Rahayu said, adding that the British tourist arrivals tend to show a positive trend.
In 2017, there were 361,197 British tourists visiting Indonesia or increased around 9.8 percent compared to that of 2016, which was recorded at 328,882. As of August 2018, there have been 264,023 British people enjoying their holidays in the archipelago.
The tourists coming from the United Kingdom, France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Russia have become the top five contributors to foreign tourist arrivals to Indonesia over the past few years.
The market value of the five European countries is recorded at more than US$1 million with the average length of stay of almost two weeks or 13.7 days.
Reporting by Zeynita Gibbons
Editing by Rahmad Nasution, Bustanuddin
Reporter: Antara
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
Copyright © ANTARA 2018
