Indonesia welcomes tourism boom

Back in business: In this file photo, tourists ride traditional boats during a dolphin-watching excursion off Lovina Beach in Bali. Here, tourism turnover reached 250 billion rupiah (RM75.24mil) during the recent Eid holiday. — AFP

JAKARTA: Indonesia has recorded a boom in the number of visitors to tourist destinations after two years of shutdown, thanks to the long Eid holiday and waived restrictions, the country’s Tourism and Creative Economy Ministry has announced.

Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Sandiaga Uno told a press briefing on Tuesday that a significant number of people flocked to various tourist sites across the world’s largest Muslim population during the Islamic Eid holiday, which ran from April 29 to May 8, with money turnover reaching up to 72 trillion rupiah (US$4.9bil or RM21.66bil).