TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The growing international tourist visits from January to November 2019 did not coincide with the occupancy levels of hotels, which experienced a drop compared to the same period in 2018. This is due to the shifting trend from hotels to virtual home-sharing sites.

Based on the records by the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), international tourist visits in Jan-Nov 2019 amounted to 14.90 million, which was higher than the same period in 2018 of 14.39 million. Meanwhile, hotel occupancy in 2019 was lower compared to the same period in 2018.

Hotel room occupancy in 2019 was 58.58 percent, which was lower compared to the same period in 2018 with 60.19 percent.

The Indonesian Hotels and Restaurant Association (IHRA) Chairman, Hariyadi B. Sukamdani, confirmed that the past year saw a massive trend from staying at hotels to accommodations from home-sharing sites. He said Airbnb has attracted international tourists the most compared to others such as OYO and RedDoorz.

This shifting trend was also confirmed by the Indonesian Tourism Scholars Association (ICPI) Chairman Azril Azhari. He said the virtual hotel operators had capitalized on the digital transformation as in other segments in the market.

“This is the rise of small-sized enterprises in tourism, including accommodation and lodging. There is also the rise in the middle class who are extremely interested in tourism,” said Azril.

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