Govt bets on AI travel assistant to lure more foreign tourists
The Tourism Ministry has launched MAiA, an AI-powered travel assistant built into the revamped Wonderful Indonesia website. The goal is simple: make trip planning easier for visitors and push foreign arrivals beyond pre-pandemic highs.
At the launch on Nov 28, Tourism Minister Widiyanti Putri Wardhana called MAiA a concrete step toward a smart, inclusive, and sustainable tourism ecosystem. The ministry sees this as a practical tool to guide travelers, cut friction, and spread demand across more regions.
What MAiA does
- Instant, personalized destination picks based on traveler preferences
- Automated itinerary building and interactive maps
- Short, easy-to-scan attraction summaries
- Multilingual support to reduce language barriers
You can explore the updated platform here: Wonderful Indonesia.
Policy goals behind the move
MAiA isn't just about higher arrival counts. It's also meant to increase tourist spending and route benefits to places that rarely show up on mainstream travel apps-local cuisines, crafts, and districts that deserve attention.
"Each year we're given targets, for instance, this year it's 14 to 15 million [foreign visitors]. MAiA can help push us toward that, to reach those levels," said Ni Made Ayu Marthini, the ministry's marketing deputy.
What government teams should watch
- Data governance: Clear policies for data collection, storage, consent, and deletion
- Fairness and inclusion: Audit recommendations to avoid bias against lesser-known regions and small operators
- Content quality: Short, accurate, multilingual summaries with consistent updates from verified sources
- Service integration: Smooth handoffs to transport, accommodation, events, and payment partners
- Crisis readiness: Rapid content updates for weather, health advisories, and local disruptions
- SME onboarding: Simple pathways for local businesses to be discovered and booked
Metrics to track
- Conversion: Clicks from MAiA to bookings, and bookings to arrivals
- Distribution: Share of visits and spend in secondary and rural destinations
- Visitor value: Average length of stay and per-visitor spend
- Experience: User satisfaction scores and multilingual support effectiveness
- Ecosystem impact: Number of onboarded SMEs and their revenue growth
Implementation notes for agencies
- Start with priority segments (top source markets and top languages), then expand
- Publish a public-facing AI use policy and feedback channel
- Set up a cross-agency content desk with weekly update cycles
- Run quarterly audits on recommendations, accessibility, and inclusivity
- Coordinate with immigration data, events calendars, and transport schedules while respecting privacy rules
Looking ahead
MAiA gives Indonesia a scalable way to guide demand and showcase more of the country-without sending travelers through a maze of apps. The test now is execution: consistent data, strong governance, and clear KPIs that tie tech to real outcomes for visitors and local communities.
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