KAI Wisata expands rail tourism offerings amid growing demand

KAI Wisata, a subsidiary of Indonesian state railway operator Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI), is expanding its services beyond train travel to meet growing demand, with improvements to onboard dining and the development of accommodation services.

The expansion aligns with KAI’s strategy of integrating premium options, including Luxury, Panoramic and Compartment Suites coaches, into regular scheduled train services alongside standard executive carriages. This allows passengers to choose from different travel classes on the same routes.

The expansion is also supported by station amenities such as transit hotels, waiting lounges and luggage lockers. To improve onboard dining, KAI is introducing Warteg on Train, a point-and-pick dining service, alongside pre-ordered local dishes from cities along train routes.

Speaking at WITF 2026 in Jakarta, Hetty Herawati, commercial director of KAI Wisata, said journeys were increasingly becoming part of the holiday experience. KAI Wisata is also developing railtour.id as a one-stop booking platform for multiple travel services.

KAI Wisata served 216,980 customers from January to August 2026, a 49 per cent year-on-year increase, while passenger numbers on its Panoramic service rose 62.86 per cent to 140,583.

Across the wider network, KAI Group carried more than 3.7 million international travellers during the same period, with Yogyakarta the most popular destination, followed by Jakarta and Bandung.

Despite demand from European, Malaysian and Singaporean markets, travel operators continue to face operational challenges.

Heben Ezer, product and operations manager of Exotic Tour & Leisure, told TTG Asia that limited seating on Panoramic carriages, with just 80 seats across two cars, makes it difficult to guarantee availability in tour packages.

He called on KAI to introduce a booking platform for travel agents, offer more competitive low-season rates and better align train schedules with hotel check-in times.

Daniel Nugraha, owner of Exotic Java Trails, said rail travel was particularly popular among FIT clients from the Netherlands, Germany and France, with more than 80 per cent of his clients taking train journeys to enjoy views of villages, forests and rice fields.

Popular routes include Bandung-Yogyakarta, Bandung-Banjar, Yogyakarta-Mojokerto, continuing to Malang, and Bandung-Malang.

However, Daniel noted that while 06.00 departures allow passengers to enjoy the scenery, they can result in arrivals that are too early for hotel check-in, while evening services offer fewer sightseeing opportunities.

He also called for KAI Wisata to establish a booking portal for travel agents to address booking difficulties. Improvements to availability, pricing and scheduling could help operators better meet demand for rail tourism.