Despite the long-drawn general and presidential elections in 2004, business travel to Jakarta fared positively last year.

Total international arrivals to the city increased from 980,371 in 2003 to 1,049,903 in 2004.

Data from the Jakarta Tourism Office showed business travel contributed 51.6 per cent of arrivals to Jakarta, while leisure and visiting friends and relatives contributed 23.6 per cent and 11.7 per cent respectively. The contribution from the events sector is still very small at 2.5 per cent.

Asia is the major source of travellers to Jakarta, with the average length of stay between four and six days per visit.

Since the new government took office in October last year, international arrivals to Jakarta have continued to rise.

City hotel occupancy in the first quarter of the year reached above 60 per cent on average.

The city government this year is targeting arrivals to Jakarta to reach 2.2 million.

Jakarta allotted four billion rupiah (US$430,000) to the Enjoy Jakarta campaign in 2005 as a means to reach the targeted number of arrivals.