Banten. The number of tourists visiting Banten during the Christmas 2024 and New Year 2025 holiday season dropped significantly compared to the previous year.

Data from the Banten Provincial Tourism Office showed only 193,309 tourists visited as of Jan. 1, a sharp decrease from 344,700 recorded during the same period in 2023.

Tri Nurtopo, the Acting Head of the Banten Tourism Office, attributed the decline to extreme weather conditions, including heavy rain and strong winds, as well as public concerns over the potential for a megathrust earthquake.

"The low number of tourist visits during the 2024 year-end holiday period is due to extreme weather and the megathrust issue," Tri said, as quoted by Antara.

The tourist trend was inconsistent, with the highest number of visits recorded on Dec. 29, 2024, at 34,969, followed by Jan. 1, 2025, at 34,794. This pattern mirrored the visiting trends during the 2023 holiday season.

Among Banten's regencies and cities, Lebak Regency saw the highest number of visitors with 51,056 tourists. In contrast, Pandeglang Regency had led in the previous year with 64,243 visits. Despite concerns, beach tourism remained the most popular attraction, drawing 96,945 visitors. However, the period also witnessed 40 incidents of tourists being swept away by strong currents at various locations.