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DIGITAL travel platform Agoda recorded a surge in tourist interest in Yogyakarta and Surakarta in November 2025, coinciding with the Wonderful Indonesia Wellness Festival.
According to Gede Gunawan, Agoda’s Senior Country Director for Indonesia, said tourists from South Korea showed the highest increase in accommodation searches, jumping more than eleven times compared to the previous year.
“This trend highlights the high interest in wellness tourism and holistic experiences, while also showing Indonesia’s potential as a leading destination in this sector,” he said.
Gede explained, organized by the Ministry of Tourism, the Wonderful Indonesia Wellness Festival showcases the rich fitness heritage of the Mataram Kingdom, which combines Javanese traditions with modern fitness practices. This festival presents two main agendas, namely “Jogja Cultural Wellness Festival (JCWF) 2025” in Yogyakarta and “Royal Surakarta Wellness Festival (RSWF)” in Surakarta.
“Agoda data shows that the festival is attracting the attention of fitness enthusiasts from various countries, with a 15% increase in accommodation searches to Yogyakarta and a 119% increase to Surakarta in November, compared to the previous year,” he affirmed.
He added that the three main countries that showed the highest interest in visiting Yogyakarta and Surakarta during November were South Korea, Malaysia and Singapore. South Korea recorded the highest jump of 1,121%, followed by Thailand (221%) and Japan (16%). The findings point to a wider trend, with travelers increasingly prioritizing health and wellness on their travel agendas, with the greatest interest coming from Asian markets.
“The increasing interest of South Korean tourists is also in line with the Indonesian government’s efforts to promote fitness tourism to tourists from the Ginseng Country during their visit to Seoul last September,” he noted.
With increasing interest in fitness tourism and government support in developing unique traditional fitness potential, Indonesia has a great opportunity to become one of the leading fitness tourism centers in the region and the world. In fact, according to the Global Wellness Institute, Indonesia is now ranked in the top six fitness economies in the Asia Pacific region with the third highest growth.
Gede Gunawan added that Indonesia’s fitness tourism potential is very large and deserves global attention. Apart from popular destinations such as Bali, Yogyakarta and Surakarta, there are still many other areas that have untapped potential.
“Agoda is committed to helping tourists enjoy Indonesia’s rich culture and wellness traditions through a platform that makes it easy for them to find accommodation, flights and activities to refresh their mind, body and soul,” he concluded. [traveltext.id]
