Indonesia Highlights Culinary Tourism to Boost Foreign Tourists
Jakarta, The Gulf Observer: The Ministry of Tourism has underscored Indonesia’s rich culinary heritage as a key strategy to attract more foreign tourists, with culinary tourism being a primary focus in both the short and long-term goals.
Hariyanto, Deputy for Tourism and Infrastructure Development at the Ministry, emphasized that culinary tourism is one of the ministry’s priority programs. “Indeed, culinary tourism is one of our priority programs, both in the short and long term,” he stated on Friday.
He pointed out that Indonesia boasts a diverse range of local dishes that foreign tourists can explore, including fried rice, gado-gado (a vegetable salad with peanut sauce), and soto (traditional Indonesian soup). He added that many of these culinary offerings are deeply tied to the local wisdom of each region, making the experience even more appealing to visitors.
Hariyanto further noted that Indonesia’s culinary tourism offers vast and varied opportunities, suggesting that the potential for increasing foreign tourist spending is much higher compared to other destinations such as Thailand. “Culinary tourism is part of the tourism product, and there are so many things that we really have to pay attention to,” he explained.
In addition to promoting culinary tourism, the Ministry is also focusing on wellness tourism, gastronomy, marine tourism, and fashion as part of its broader tourism development strategy. “Fashion has the potential to increase the interest and visits of both foreign and domestic tourists,” Hariyanto added.
According to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), the average expenditure of foreign tourists visiting Indonesia in 2024 was approximately US$1,391. Amalia Adininggar Widyasanti, acting head of BPS, noted that most of the spending was directed towards accommodation and food and beverages, which together accounted for 57.49 percent of the total expenditure.
In the fourth quarter of 2024, foreign tourists spent an average of US$1,287 per visit and stayed for an average of 10.39 nights in Indonesia.
The government’s efforts to leverage Indonesia’s culinary offerings as part of a broader tourism strategy are expected to further boost the country’s appeal to international visitors.
