Chinese tourists fuel Labuan Bajo boom

Growing market

In April 2025 alone, Chinese travelers accounted for 28.6 percent of the 42,000 tourist arrivals in Labuan Bajo, a figure that includes both foreign and domestic visitors.

In June 2026, a total of 41,806 foreign tourists visited Komodo Island, compared with 7,850 domestic visitors, according to official data from Komodo National Park.

The Indonesian government has set a target of attracting up to 1.7 million Chinese tourists this year, compared with a total target of 16 million to 17.6 million foreign visitors.

Indonesian tourism authorities have launched programs to attract more Chinese tourists. For example, the country offers visa-on-arrival facilities to Chinese visitors and citizens of 96 other countries, and allows an initial stay of 30 days, which can be extended for another 30 days.

Tallo of Floressa Bali Tours said that Chinese travelers to Labuan Bajo and other destinations would become the largest visitor group because Indonesia is relatively close to China compared with the United States, Europe, and Australia.

Labuan Bajo now has a Chinese language center specializing in tourism, which officially began operations in May.

Tallo said he expects more Chinese tourists to come if direct flights from China are introduced. Most tourists can only reach Labuan Bajo by transiting from either Bali or the capital city of Jakarta.

For international flights, Scoot, a subsidiary of Singapore Airlines, operates three direct flights a week from Singapore to Labuan Bajo. Malaysian budget airline AirAsia operates up to seven flights a week from Kuala Lumpur to Labuan Bajo.

Labuan Bajo's Komodo Airport was officially granted international airport status in April 2024 and handled its first scheduled international route, connecting Labuan Bajo with Kuala Lumpur, in September that year.

Built in 1975 and initially operating with a grass runway, the airport was named Mutiara II Airport in 1980. It was renamed Komodo Airport in 1991, reflecting the lizards' status as the region's iconic symbol.

There have been discussions about establishing direct flights from China to Labuan Bajo.