Indonesia logs 1.53 million foreign arrivals in July 2026, topping 2019

Labuan Bajo — Indonesia recorded 1,525,037 foreign tourist arrivals in July 2026, according to Statistics Indonesia (Badan Pusat Statistik, BPS) data compiled by travel‑industry tracker Pear Anderson and matching figures reported by several Indonesian media outlets.

The July total represents a modest increase over July 2025, with BPS describing a 2.95% year‑on‑year rise and a 9.99% gain compared with June 2026. Several outlets note that this is the strongest monthly performance since the pre‑pandemic period.

According to Pear Anderson’s Southeast Asia Travel Industry Pulse for Indonesia, July’s 1,525,037 arrivals are compared against a July 2019 baseline of 1,468,173, implying a recovery to about 104% of the pre‑pandemic benchmark for that month. Trading Economics, which republishes BPS series data, lists the same July 2026 total and shows the July 2019 figure at 1,468,173 arrivals, supporting the comparison.

BPS data also show that most foreign visitors entered Indonesia through the main international gateways. Media reports based on BPS figures state that around 1.36 million arrivals in July were recorded at primary entry points such as international airports and major seaports, while roughly 162,000 arrivals came through border crossings.

January–July totals still below annual target

Pear Anderson’s compilation of BPS statistics puts total foreign arrivals in Indonesia at 8.98 million between January and July 2026. This cumulative figure is echoed by several news outlets citing BPS, which describe a 5.23% increase compared with the same period in 2025.

The travel‑industry tracker notes a government target of 17 million foreign tourist arrivals for full‑year 2026, indicating that the January–July total represents around 53% of that goal rather than the 81% suggested by a simple comparison with the target. Reports summarising BPS data similarly frame 8.98 million as a solid year‑to‑date gain, but not yet near the annual target.

Several analyses highlight the composition of July arrivals by nationality. BPS officials have stated that visitors holding Malaysian passports accounted for around 15% of foreign tourists in July 2026, followed by Australians at about 12.34% and Chinese visitors at roughly 10.28%. Commentaries attribute Malaysia’s leading position partly to regional school holidays and dense short‑haul flight connections.

National recovery, local trends still unclear

The 104% recovery ratio for July 2026 is calculated specifically against July 2019 and reflects a month‑by‑month comparison at the national level. Pear Anderson’s series notes that some intermediate years are missing from the publicly compiled data, so the comparison does not show how July 2026 performed relative to July 2024 or July 2025 beyond the broad year‑on‑year increase reported by BPS.

The national figures therefore indicate that Indonesia’s inbound tourism, in aggregate, has moved slightly above its July 2019 benchmark, but they do not demonstrate that every individual destination has recovered at the same pace. For Labuan Bajo and Flores, available reporting focuses more on disruption and subsequent recovery measures than on detailed arrival statistics.

In a September 2026 report on post‑disaster tourism, Indonesia’s public broadcaster describes how a magnitude 7.7 earthquake affected the Labuan Bajo and Flores region, temporarily closing several destinations and damaging tourist attractions, accommodation and access roads. The same report notes that the West Manggarai Regency government has since reported tourism activities in Labuan Bajo returning to normal, with visitor numbers described as relatively stable and Komodo National Park and Padar Island reopened to visitors.

However, the post‑disaster coverage does not publish July 2026 international‑arrival figures for Labuan Bajo, Flores or West Manggarai, nor does it quantify the earthquake’s impact on hotel occupancy, flight operations or visits to Komodo National Park. As a result, while national indicators show that Indonesia’s inbound tourism has climbed above its pre‑pandemic July benchmark, the available data do not establish whether Labuan Bajo’s tourism economy has recovered at the same rate, especially in light of recent infrastructure disruptions.

July 2026 arrivals at a glance

• International arrivals in July 2026: 1,525,037, according to BPS data compiled by Pear Anderson.
• July 2019 comparison: 1,468,173 international arrivals.
• Recovery versus July 2019: about 104% of the pre‑pandemic benchmark for that month.
• January–July 2026 arrivals: 8.98 million foreign visitors.
• Government 2026 target: 17 million international arrivals, as cited by Pear Anderson from official plans.

Sources

• Berita Daerah
• Trading Economics
• Pear Anderson – Southeast Asia Travel Industry Pulse: Indonesia
• Katadata (Databoks) – Foreign Tourist Visits to Indonesia in July Hit Highest Level Since Early 2026
• Indonesia With Me – Indonesia’s Tourism Hits 8.98 Million Visitors in 2026 So Far
• RRI (Voice of Indonesia) – Indonesia Welcomes 8.98 Million Foreign Tourists Through July
• Expat Indonesia – Indonesia Foreign Tourist Arrivals Hit 1.53 Million in July 2026, Highest in Seven Years