Outbound Travel Is Falling: What Is Changing in How We Take Holidays
Domestic trips rose 11.47% year-on-year (yoy) in August 2026, while outbound trips fell 6.02% yoy (BPS).
The shift toward domestic travel does not signal a weakening appetite for travel. 32% of Indonesian travelers plan 11 or more trips in 2026, the highest in Asia (Agoda).
Growth is spreading beyond Bali. DI Yogyakarta grew 29.64% yoy and Central Java 25.80%, while Bali grew 8.01%, below the national average.
Nearby destinations triggered the biggest surge in interest. Ahead of the August 17 holiday, searches for Pangandaran, Garut, and Anyer rose 8.5 to more than 10 times.
The value of a trip is now weighed by accessibility, affordability, frequency, and experience all at once. 54% of respondents budget no more than US$50 per night for accommodation.
Throughout 2026, Indonesians have remained keen to travel, but the direction of their trips has changed. Domestic travel has grown by double digits, while outbound travel has shrunk. Statistics Indonesia (Badan Pusat Statistik, BPS) recorded 104.30 million domestic tourist trips in August 2026, up 11.47% compared with August 2025 (year-on-year/yoy). In the same month, outbound trips by Indonesian residents totaled 643.69 thousand, down 6.02% yoy (BPS, 2026a).
The desire to see the world has not faded. An Agoda survey found that 73% of Indonesian travelers would travel more often if visa restrictions were not a factor, and 80% would consider new destinations (Agoda, 2025b). What has shifted is the calculation of which trips make the most sense right now. Rather than one long-haul vacation abroad, more Indonesians are choosing to travel more often to destinations that are easier to reach.
For tourism industry players and marketers, this shift redraws the map of opportunity. The value of a trip is no longer measured solely by distance or a destination’s prestige, but by how easy it is to reach, how affordable it is, and how often it can be repeated.
Indonesians Are Still Traveling
This two-way pattern was already visible a month earlier. In July 2026, domestic tourist trips reached 107.44 million, up 7.23% yoy, while outbound trips fell 7.73% yoy to 802.67 thousand (BPS, 2026b). Cumulative data reinforce the direction. Over January–August 2026, domestic trips rose 4.29%, while outbound trips fell 3.56% compared with the same period last year.
These figures should be read with care. BPS counts trips, and one person can account for several trips in a month, so 104.30 million trips is not the same as 104.30 million travelers. Outbound travel also covers a wide range of purposes, including religious pilgrimage. Saudi Arabia, for example, accounted for 18.58% of outbound trips in August 2026.
With domestic growth running at double digits, it is hard to read the situation as a sign that Indonesians have stopped traveling. The more interesting question is what kind of trip now feels most sensible to them.
Domestic Travel Is More Than a Substitute
BPS data show what is happening. To understand what travelers want, Agoda’s 2026 Travel Outlook survey offers a complementary picture. The survey, which covered 3,353 respondents in nine Asian markets, including Indonesia, in October 2025, found that 57% of Indonesian travelers plan to travel domestically more often than abroad in 2026, up sharply from 17% in the previous year’s survey (Agoda, 2025a, 2025b).
The figure stands out even at the regional level. Across Asia, the share of respondents planning to increase domestic travel was 35%, well below Indonesia’s. Agoda’s data capture the plans respondents state, so they complement BPS’s record of actual trips.
What makes this finding interesting is that travel plans remain substantial. Agoda found that 32% of Indonesian respondents plan 11 or more trips in 2026, the highest in the region, and 69% plan to travel with family. If domestic travel merely served as an escape because people could not go abroad, the appetite for travel should have weakened too. What we see is a different combination: outbound travel is declining, domestic travel is rising, and planned frequency remains high. The shift toward domestic travel looks more like a change in the form of travel seen as both feasible and worthwhile.
Traveling Often Does Not Always Mean Traveling Far
Travel frequency and travel distance are two different things. A person can be very fond of traveling without always going far. BPS and Agoda data show that Indonesians still travel often, but they do not directly map how far or how short each trip is.
Here the data give a signal that should be read in balance. Indonesian respondents plan trips of 4 to 7 days on average, and 14% expect to travel for 13 days or more, the longest duration in the region. Across Asia, Agoda notes a micro-travel trend, with 32% of respondents planning trips of 1 to 3 days. This means long trips have not been abandoned, and short getaways do not necessarily replace them. The two can coexist in the same year.
Even so, the direction of interest is fairly clear. Holidays have long been associated with going far, staying longer, and visiting major destinations. Now, the form of travel that appears increasingly appealing is destinations that are easier to reach, with more flexible durations, and that can be repeated several times a year. Easy access makes traveling more frequent, without always demanding the time and cost of a longer trip.
Growth Spreading Beyond Bali
The strongest evidence for the shift toward nearer destinations lies in the map of domestic destinations. By province of destination, West Java (18.71 million trips), East Java (16.44 million), and Central Java (13.79 million) were the largest destinations for domestic tourists in August 2026 (BPS, 2026a). Volume is indeed concentrated in Java, but the more interesting story lies in the growth rates.
Among the ten largest destination provinces, DI Yogyakarta recorded the highest growth at 29.64% yoy, followed by Central Java at 25.80% and Banten at 17.61%. South Sulawesi grew 16.27%. Bali still grew 8.01%, but its pace was below the national average of 11.47%. Cumulative data point in the same direction. Over January–August 2026, trips to Central Java rose 13.22% and to DI Yogyakarta 11.39%, while trips to Bali rose 2.15%. Domestic growth is spreading across many destinations that, for most travelers, are relatively easy to reach.
Agoda’s accommodation search data capture a similar pattern from the interest side. Ahead of the Independence Day long weekend of August 15–17, 2026, Agoda recorded domestic travel interest rising more than fourfold. The highest surges appeared in regional destinations such as Pangandaran and Garut in West Java and Anyer in Banten, with increases of 8.5 to more than 10 times (Agoda, 2026).
Pangandaran, Garut, and Anyer may not always be the first names that come to mind when people imagine a holiday, but for those who have never been, these places still offer the feeling of going somewhere new. Novelty does not always have to come from a faraway destination. It can come from a coastal town or highland area just a few hours’ drive from Java’s major cities.
What Makes a Trip Feel Worthwhile
If the desire to travel remains high, the next question is what makes a trip feel worth taking. The Agoda survey offers some clues. Relaxation and culinary experiences are the two main motivations of Indonesian travelers. Promotions and discounts, lower costs, and nature and outdoor activities are the top three reasons for choosing secondary destinations over those that are already popular.
On accommodation, 54% of Indonesian respondents plan to spend no more than US$50 (about Rp840 thousand) per night (Agoda, 2025b). This figure is best read as a signal that value considerations matter in choosing a trip, especially since the same respondents also plan the highest travel frequency in the region.
From this combination of data, the value of a trip appears to be shaped by several considerations at once. How easily a destination can be reached, how much needs to be spent, how often trips can be made, and whether the experience feels commensurate are all part of the calculation. For some travelers, value also lies in who comes along, given that 69% of respondents plan to travel with family.
This reading is an interpretation of data patterns and does not derive from any single survey. Still, the pattern is fairly consistent. A trip appears increasingly judged by how much experience is gained relative to the time, cost, and energy spent, more than by how far someone goes.
What This Means for Brands and Marketers
This map opens up room for industry players outside the major destinations. Regional destinations that have long stood in the shadow of Bali and overseas travel are now enjoying the fastest growth, so local governments, accommodation operators, and local activity providers have a greater opportunity to capture interest moving in their direction. Messaging that highlights ease of access, such as driving distance from major cities, is potentially more relevant than selling luxury or exclusivity.
The high-frequency pattern also changes how consumers should be understood. Travelers who take 11 or more trips a year are a market for repeat travel, so loyalty programs, offers for short getaways, and family-friendly packages align better with this behavior than campaigns aimed only at a single big annual holiday. Value sensitivity, seen in accommodation budgets under US$50 per night, confirms that promotions and price transparency remain decision drivers alongside the promise of an experience.
One caution applies to all of this. Most of the interest signals come from plans and searches, not transactions. BPS data do confirm the same direction from actual trips, but multiple-fold surges in searches ahead of a long weekend are better read as indicators of interest than as measures of realization. High search volume needs to be validated against booking data before it is used as the basis for marketing spend decisions.
Trips Are Getting Closer, Aspirations Are Not Shrinking
The shift toward domestic destinations does not automatically mean Indonesians have lost the desire to see the world. That desire is still there, as shown by the majority who would travel more often if visas were not a barrier. What has shifted is the calculation of which trips are most feasible and most worthwhile right now.
Put together, the picture is fairly clear. Interest in traveling remains high, domestic trips are increasing, outbound trips are weakening, and the destinations that are growing are becoming more diverse. Amid all this, consumers weigh accessibility, affordability, frequency, and experience at the same time. The desire to travel remains, but the ways of fulfilling it have become more varied.
If a holiday no longer has to be far away to feel meaningful, the biggest change in how Indonesians travel may not lie in the destinations they are leaving behind. It lies in what they now consider worth pursuing in a trip.
References
Agoda. (2025a, November 25). Local adventures and culinary journeys set to shape travel next year: Agoda reveals Asia’s top five travel trends for 2026 [Press release]. Retrieved October 6, 2026, from https://www.agoda.com/press/id-id/local-adventures-and-culinary-journeys-set-to-shape-travel-next-year-agoda-reveals-asias-top-five-travel-trends-for-2026/
Agoda. (2025b). The Indonesian traveler in 2026: Data from the Agoda 2026 Travel Outlook Report [Fact sheet]. Retrieved October 6, 2026, from https://www.agoda.com/press/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/ID-Market.pdf
Agoda. (2026, August 10). Agoda: Travel interest in Indonesia more than quadruples during this year’s Independence Day long weekend [Press release]. Retrieved October 6, 2026, from https://www.agoda.com/press/agoda-travel-interest-in-indonesia-more-than-quadruples-during-this-years-independence-day-long-weekend/
Badan Pusat Statistik. (2026a). Perkembangan pariwisata Agustus 2026 [Tourism developments, August 2026] (Berita Resmi Statistik No. 98/10/Th. XXIX). Retrieved October 6, 2026, from https://www.bps.go.id/id/pressrelease/2026/10/01/2617/
Badan Pusat Statistik. (2026b). Bahan tayang Berita Resmi Statistik 1 Oktober 2026 [Presentation materials for the Official Statistics News Release, October 1, 2026] [Presentation]. Retrieved October 6, 2026, from https://www.bps.go.id/id/pressrelease
