Middle Eastern Tourist Visits to Bali Surge 111.57% in a Month

Middle Eastern tourist visits increased from 4,640 people in April to 9,817 people in May 2026, according to data from the Bali Central Statistics Agency (BPS). In percentage terms, the increase in Middle Eastern tourist visits to Bali from April to May 2026 reached 111.57%. This rise was driven by an increase in tourists from Saudi Arabia and Egypt.

The Head of BPS Bali, Agus Gede Hendrayana Hermawan, said this surge was likely influenced by the recovery of flights from the Middle East region. Flights in the area were previously affected by geopolitical conflict. “Yes, because last month there were almost no flights. Maybe that’s it, because there was a conflict. Indeed, now it might be somewhat better,” said Hendrayana on Wednesday (1/7/2026).

Agus explained that the conflict in the Middle East had caused the cancellation of several flights, impacting the decline in tourist numbers in the previous month. Overall, the number of foreign tourist visits to Bali in May 2026 showed a positive trend, rising 4.50% compared to April 2026. However, on an annual or year-on-year basis, the number of visits was still 3.98% lower compared to May 2025.

“Month-to-month it has risen. Year-on-year, it is indeed still lower now. Last month, the conflict in the Middle East started. There were several flight cancellations, then the number of visits dropped. But the hope is that it won’t decline going forward,” explained Hendrayana.

The Head of Tourism Marketing for the Bali Tourism Office, Ida Ayu Indah Yustikarini, said they remain vigilant about the impact of the geopolitical crisis on the tourism sector on the Island of the Gods. Although tourist visits from the Middle East have increased, the Bali Provincial Government, together with tourism industry players, is temporarily focusing more on promoting to short-distance markets.

“For foreign tourists, what we are targeting now is the short distance ones. So not those who need long haul or a long time, like Europe or America, but we are focusing on the short distance ones,” explained Dayu Indah. According to Dayu Indah, the short-distance tourist market is considered safer because it does not require transit through the Middle East region, which is still facing uncertainty due to the geopolitical conflict. “Because they don’t need to transit in the Middle East region, like that, because of the geopolitical crisis. So we are looking at, for example, Asia-Pacific. Australia, China, India, South Korea, Japan, like that. The focus is there first,” added Dayu Indah.