Malaysia Dominates Foreign Tourist Arrivals to NTB via Air

The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) recorded that tourists from Malaysia were the largest contributors to foreign visits entering West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) via Lombok Airport throughout May 2026. “Malaysia is the country of origin for the most tourists entering through Lombok Airport. Their number reached 2,812 people,” said Head of BPS NTB Wahyudin in Mataram on Wednesday. Throughout May 2026, BPS recorded a total of 7,987 foreign tourists arriving through Lombok Airport. Of that figure, around 35 per cent came from Malaysia, followed by Singapore with 950 people and France with 551 people. Many Malaysian tourists holiday in West Nusa Tenggara because of direct flights between Lombok Airport and Kuala Lumpur, making it easier for them to vacation on Lombok Island and Sumbawa Island. Based on region, Wahyudin said foreign tourist visits were dominated by the ASEAN region with 4,030 people, Europe with 2,489 people, non-ASEAN Asia with 858 people, the Americas with 324 people, Oceania with 207 people, Africa with 72 people, and the Middle East with seven people. “Foreign tourists are highest from ASEAN and, looking in more detail, the majority of them come from Malaysia,” he said. The schedule for direct flights from Lombok to Kuala Lumpur is one to two times daily. Ticket prices range from around Rp3.5 million to Rp4.5 million, with a flight duration of three hours. The NTB government continues to intensify promotions for Muslim-friendly tourism and quality destinations as a strategy to boost tourist visits from the neighbouring country. Although Malaysia is the main market for foreign tourists entering by air, total foreign tourist visits to NTB in May 2026 declined compared to the previous month and the same period last year. The number of foreign tourists fell 8.05 per cent compared to April 2026, which recorded 8,686 people. Annually, foreign tourist visits also dropped 7.57 per cent compared to May 2025, which saw 8,641 people.