JAKARTA - A netizen's upload on social media suddenly went viral because he shared his experience choosing an international route to Malaysia and then flying to Medan which was much cheaper than a direct domestic flight.
The story was uploaded by Marsha Chikita Fawzi through an account named @chikifawzi. In the photo uploaded on December 22, 2025, Chiki told about her experience when she was going to Central Aceh.
Chiki admitted that he was surprised to find that the Jakarta-Medan ticket price reached around Rp. 8 to Rp. 9 million. Because of the high ticket price, Chiki looked for other alternatives, he finally chose a detour route by flying from Jakarta to Malaysia for Rp. 1.5 million. Then continue the journey from Malaysia to Medan with a plane fare of Rp. 500,000 for one way.
With this detour route, Chiki said the total cost to get to Medan was only IDR 2 million. Much cheaper than direct domestic flights.
"I want to go to Central Aceh, flight through Malaysia because the price is more reasonable. If the flight to Medan is Rp8-Rp9 million, if it is through Malaysia it is around Rp2 million (Jkt-Malaysia Rp1.5 million. Malay-Medan Rp500.000-an. The challenge is to bring large items such as water purifiers and others, which want to be installed in Aceh," wrote Chiki quoted from Instagram @chikifawzi, Wednesday, December 24.
Based on VOI's search, there is a significant price difference between the domestic Jakarta-Medan route and the international Kuala Lumpur-Medan and Jakarta-Kuala Lumpur routes in the period 24-26 December 2025.
Referring to the Traveloka application, for the Jakarta (CGK) - Medan (KNO) route on Thursday, December 25, 2025, the price of TransNusa airline tickets connected to AirAsia Indonesia and AirAsia Berhad (Malaysia) is priced in the range of IDR 3.1 million to IDR 3.2 million per passenger, depending on the departure time and transit duration.
Meanwhile, the price offered by the Batik Air Malaysia airline connected to AirAsia Indonesia ranges from IDR 3.5 million, with a longer travel time because of one transit.
Meanwhile, on the Tiket.com application, the Jakarta-Medan flight with a combination of Lion Air and Super Air Jet is listed for sale in the range of Rp. 2.1 million to Rp. 2.2 million per passenger, with a longer travel time because of one transit.
However, when compared to the detour option like Chiki Fawzi chose through Malaysia, the price of the direct flight ticket Jakarta-Medan is still cheaper.
Based on the same data, tickets for the Jakarta-Kuala Lumpur route served by Malaysia Airlines and Batik Air Malaysia are in the range of IDR 2 million to IDR 3.2 million per passenger.
Meanwhile, the continuation ticket Kuala Lumpur-Medan operated by AirAsia Indonesia and Batik Air Malaysia is sold from IDR 797,000 to around IDR 1 million per passenger.
If combined, the total cost of travel with the Jakarta-Malaysia-Medan detour route can reach more than IDR 3.5 million to IDR 4 million per person. Direct flights remain a relatively more efficient option in terms of time and cost compared to detour international routes.
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