US, EU tourists expected to decline 3 percent

The number of US and European tourists visiting Indonesia this year is predicted to decline by 3 percent from last year, the Travel Agency Association says.

“We have calculated the number of tourists in Bali, and the result shows a decline of three percent. Bali is enough to represent Indonesia,” agency chairman Asnawi Bahar said on Tuesday as quoted by kompas.com.

He said US and European tourists contributed about 15 percent to total foreign visitors in Indonesia.

Indonesia is targeting as many as 7.7 million foreign tourists this year. Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Mari Elka Pangestu recently said she was optimistic the target could be met despite the projected decline of US and European foreign visitors thanks to the expected increase of tourists from Asia, especially China, India and the Middle East.