JAKARTA: Saudi Arabia and Indonesia are looking to further their tourism cooperation following a ministerial meeting, with Jakarta preparing to attract more tourists from the Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia is one of the main markets for Indonesia’s tourism sector, with more than 156,000 Saudi travelers visiting the archipelagic nation last year — the highest number of any Middle Eastern country.
Saudi Tourism Minister Ahmed Al-Khateeb and his Indonesian counterpart Widiyanti Putri Wardhana discussed ways to strengthen tourism partnership during a meeting on the sidelines of a UN meeting in Toledo, Spain, on Thursday, their offices said in a joint statement.
“Saudi Arabia is one of Indonesia’s key partners in the Middle East, and Indonesia stands ready to further deepen this partnership, particularly in tourism, in a spirit of mutual respect and shared benefit,” Wardhana said.
Saudi tourists are considered big-spenders among foreign travelers visiting Indonesia, who tend to stay for longer periods and travel with families, with the popular holiday spots of Bali and Puncak cited as their destinations of choice.
Indonesia is hoping to attract at least 16 million foreign tourists this year, and has been participating in international tourism trade shows such as the Arabian Travel Market and the Riyadh Travel Fair to promote its top travel destinations, such as Bali.
Indonesian officials are also planning to improve the training of its hospitality workers to accommodate more travelers from the Arab world as part of efforts to “welcome more Saudi tourists,” the tourism ministry said.
As tourism is also a key sector in the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, the two countries have held various discussions on how to boost ties in this field, including in efforts to upskill their tourism workers.
“Saudi Arabia and Indonesia share a uniquely strong tourism connection through faith and culture,” Al-Khateeb said.
“We are now working closely with our Indonesian partners to enrich that connection, expand tourism exchange, enhance the visitor journey, and create opportunities for our destinations, businesses and communities.”
