DENPASAR, Bali — Bali welcomed around 4.7 million foreign tourists between January and August 2026, with Australians making up the largest group of international arrivals, according to immigration data cited by I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport.
Australian passport holders accounted for around 1.1 million arrivals during the eight-month period, well ahead of other major tourism markets.
Chinese visitors ranked second with around 418,000 arrivals, followed by India with 363,000, the United Kingdom with 206,000 and South Korea with 203,000.
The figures underline Australia’s continued importance to Bali’s tourism industry, with several Australian cities also among the airport’s busiest international routes.
Between January and August, Perth recorded around 794,000 passenger movements, Melbourne 731,000 and Sydney 574,000.
Singapore remained the airport’s busiest international route overall, with around 1.7 million passenger movements, followed by Kuala Lumpur with 1 million.
I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport handled a total of 15.5 million passengers during the first eight months of 2026, including around 10 million international passengers and 5.5 million domestic passengers.
Airport General Manager Nugroho Jati said the figures showed Bali remained one of Indonesia’s most popular destinations for both domestic and international travellers.
The airport recorded around 94,000 aircraft movements over the same period, including approximately 52,000 international and 42,000 domestic movements.
By the end of August, Ngurah Rai Airport was serving 65 routes, comprising 41 international routes operated by 44 airlines and 24 domestic routes served by 11 airlines.
Airport authorities said they plan to strengthen connectivity through new routes, additional airlines and increased flight frequencies.
Ngurah Rai Airport has also continued to upgrade its facilities, including the opening of a connecting bridge between the international and domestic terminals in August aimed at making transfers more efficient.
The strong arrival figures come as Bali continues to rely heavily on international tourism, with Australia remaining its single largest overseas visitor market.
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