“We must promote shopping tourism to neighboring countries, to ASEAN, and to other markets as well,” Widiyanti said during a press conference in Jakarta on Friday.
According to her, strong tourist interest in shopping is reflected in 2024 trends, with the average spending of foreign visitors in Indonesia reaching US$1,391. Of that amount, 11.4 percent was spent on souvenirs or gifts.
She added that the Ministry of Tourism’s Deputy for Promotion has reported a significant surge in shopping activities in Bali, particularly among tourists from India.
Based on her own observations, Widiyanti said shopping remains especially popular among female travelers, notably mothers.
Citing YouGov’s Global Travel Profiles 2023 data, she noted that 27 percent of Indonesian tourists - both domestic and outbound - travel because they are motivated by shopping activities.
“In 2025, from January to September, we have already seen very significant growth. Domestic tourist trips reached 901.9 million, an 18.99 percent increase year on year,” she said.
To tap into this potential, the Tourism Ministry is launching several initiatives to strengthen the promotion of shopping tourism ahead of the Christmas and New Year holidays.
One such initiative is the “Saatnya Liburan #DiIndonesiaAja” (It’s Holiday Time #InIndonesiaOnly) campaign, aligned with the “Belanja di Indonesia Aja” (BINA) program - a collaborative effort between the government and retail industry associations, particularly the Indonesian Shopping Center Tenants and Retailers Association (HIPPINDO).
Through this campaign, the ministry is urging its partners to prepare and promote special holiday travel packages for the Christmas and New Year period.
The ministry is also working closely with online travel agencies (OTAs) to amplify sales of holiday packages and boost interest in traveling within Indonesia.
So far, 23 industry partners have curated a variety of attractive travel packages to be showcased through five promotional activities, including business matching events, exhibitions, and tourism forums.
“We are optimistic that the BINA program will further drive domestic travel and increase foreign tourist spending,” Widiyanti said.
This year, BINA is introducing the “Indonesia Great Sale 2025” as a national initiative to strengthen the tourism ecosystem and provide broad benefits for both major businesses and MSMEs. The event is scheduled to run from December 18, 2025, to January 4, 2026.
Widiyanti expressed hope that more than 400 shopping centers across at least 24 provinces will take part, with a transaction target of Rp30 trillion.
“We are confident that the Indonesia Great Sale 2025 will serve as a catalyst that strengthens the tourism ecosystem and delivers wide-ranging benefits for large businesses as well as MSMEs,” she said.
Related news: RI logs 11 mln foreign tourist arrivals in Jan-Sep 2025, up from 2024
Related news: Year-end buy local campaign generates US$1.58 billion in transactions
Translator: Santi, Azis Kurmala
Editor: Primayanti
Copyright © ANTARA 2025
