Culinary Tourism Becomes The Main Trend Of Traveling In Asia, Indonesia Enters The Top Five Most Interested

JAKARTA - Culinary tourism is the main magnet for tourists to travel in Asia. In the latest list of Agoda digital travel platforms, there are several destinations that are most in demand for the experience of eating and tasting local flavors in Asia.

Based on this data, Japan occupies the top spot for culinary tourism in Asia, during the search period from June to July 2025. Quoted from Travel Daily News, on Tuesday, September 2, 2025, Thailand took second place on the list, followed by Vietnam, Indonesia, and Malaysia.

The five countries dominate the search for tourists who make food and drinks the main focus on their journey. This opens up strategic opportunities for hotels to stand out in the market, through collaboration with local restaurants or street food providers that are famous for increasing tourist visits.

"Tourists are now more daring in exploring flavors and actively looking for destinations known for their culinary cultural wealth," said Vice President for Supply at Agoda Andrew Smith.

Not only that, tourists from Japan are also one of the most active in looking for culinary experiences. Both domestically and in neighboring countries such as Thailand, South Korea, Vietnam, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.

The trend of tourists who increasingly prioritize culinary in traveling is a signal for hotels, restaurants, and street vendors to continue to develop their products to satisfy the end.

"We encourage hotel partners to take advantage of this trend by highlighting local places to eat, working with local restaurants or providing curated culinary experiences specifically for guests," he added.

This is expected to attract global culinary lovers to travel to Asia. Thus, it will strengthen Asia's position as a global gastronomy tourism center in the future.