Booming Tourism: Hospitality Investment Conference Indonesia 2015

The HICI 2015, endorsed by the Indonesian Ministry of Tourism, will provide ample information regarding the investment environment in Indonesia’s hospitality sector through enable dialogues between hotel owners, operators and managers, developers, investors, bankers, architects, suppliers, and accountants by providing a two-day networking and business-to-business platform to facilitate hospitality investment in Indonesia.

During the two-day event several key issues that are to be discussed include hotel investment in 2015, an aviation update, big brands, environmental issues, blossoming of niche tourism, design, and attractive locations for hospitality development in Indonesia.

The tourism sector of Indonesia is booming. Last year, the country welcomed a record high of 9.44 million foreign visitor arrivals, up 7.19 percent (y/y) from the preceding year. Since 2009, foreign tourist arrivals have grown significantly. However, compared to regional peers Singapore and Malaysia, Indonesia still lags behind in terms of tourist numbers, primarily due to weak infrastructure (connectivity) but also due to the generally weak English language proficiency of Indonesians (outside the main tourists centers in Bali and Jakarta). The Indonesian government fosters has high hopes for its tourism sector as by 2019 this sector is targeted to contribute 8 percent to the country's gross domestic product (GDP), from 4 percent in 2014. This would require raising the numbers to about 20 million foreign tourist arrivals and 275 domestic tourist trips. Earlier this week it was reported that the Indonesian government will allow foreigners from 30 additional countries to enter Indonesia without a visa (for short visits). As such, from April 2015, residents from a total of 45 countries will be exempted from visa requirements for short visits to Indonesia. Indonesian Tourism Minister Arief Yahya, who is on the HICI 2015 speaker list, said that this policy is expected to increase revenue in the tourism sector as it will attract more tourists. Yahya estimates that visa-free travel for 45 countries will lead to an additional 1 million foreign visitor arrivals. As each foreign visitor spends an average USD $1,200 per visit to Indonesia, it will add USD $1.2 billion in foreign exchange earnings for Southeast Asia’s largest economy. In combination with the government’s commitment to invest in infrastructure development, the tourism industry in Indonesia is projected to grow strongly in the years ahead and therefore provides ample opportunity for investors that seek to tap the hospitality sector.

Foreign Tourist Arrivals in Indonesia, 2013-2015:

Month	Tourist Arrivals          2013	Tourist Arrivals          2014	Tourist Arrivals          2015
January	614,328	753,079	723,039
February	678,415	702,666
March	725,316	765,607
April	646,117	726,332
May	700,708	752,363
June	789,594	851,475
July	717,784	777,210
August	771,009	826,821
September	770,878	791,296
October	719,900	808,767
November	807,422	764,461
December	766,966	915,334
Total	8,802,129	9,435,411	723,039

^{Source: Statistics Indonesia (BPS)}

Foreign Tourist Arrivals in Indonesia, 2007-2015:

	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015
Foreign Tourists (in millions)	5.51	6.23	6.32	7.00	7.65	8.04	8.80	9.44	10.0¹

^{¹ indicates government target
Source: Statistics Indonesia (BPS)}

Further Reading:

• Official Website Hospitality Investment Conference Indonesia 2015

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