Up to Rp50 Million Per Trip, Indonesians Hunt for Clinics Abroad

In the morning at Kuala Lumpur airport, small suitcases, tight schedules, and one clinic name already locked in from Jakarta. This trip is short, but its value is substantial. Citing BPS, the average Indonesian travelling abroad for health and beauty purposes spends US$3,340 per trip, approaching Rp50 million. This figure stands far above other motives. Holidays are around US$1,354. Business travel is about US$1,789. The gap is wide and consistent across the entire survey sample. Spending growth in this segment is also the fastest. In one year, it has grown by double digits. The flow of money is concentrated on trips with specific destinations for medical procedures, aesthetic treatments, or pre-scheduled care packages. Tickets and hotels are only a small part of the total cost. The core expenditure is on services purchased in the destination country. In the spending structure, the health component absorbs more than US$2,400 per trip. The 35-44 age group forms the backbone, accounting for about a third of total trips in this segment. Following closely, the 25-34 age group with nearly the same share. More than half are university graduates. Nearly a third have completed postgraduate education. At work, dominance is in the managerial level. More than half of the participants are in this group. Beauty as a direct product appears in small figures, less than US$10 per trip. The main focus is on procedures, not light cosmetic consumption. The under-25 group records the highest spending for the beauty category in the travel spending component, around US$32 per trip. The value decreases in the 25-44 age group, then rises again above 44. At the same time, spending on health increases with age, peaking in the over-44 group. Meanwhile, men take about 60% of the total trips in this category. For these needs, Malaysia appears to be the favourite destination. Around 7% of trips to that country are directly related to health and beauty needs. The medical spending value reaches US$2,844 per trip. Travel costs there are relatively low. Short duration, similar language, and cuisine akin to Indonesian tastes, its service system is already established. This combination creates efficiency beyond the core costs, providing more room for medical spending itself. If these trips are dissected in more detail, the largest expenditure is on medical procedures. Beyond that, supporting costs follow, accommodation around US$293, food and drink US$188, personal shopping around US$130. Outbound trips continue to rise in recent years. The number of national tourist trips (wisnas) in 2025 was recorded at 9,165,894 trips, up 2.45% from 2024. This achievement is the highest in the last five years, especially post-Covid-19 pandemic. This consistent growth indicates recovery in the outbound tourism sector and increasing public interest in cross-country travel. Each trip brings high average spending, and for this segment, the value is at the upper layer. Most spending occurs abroad. The portion spent domestically before and after the trip is under 10%.