Bali to host international expo on spa, wellness
Desy Nurhayati, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar | Fri, 03/04/2011 11:44 AM
Strengthening its reputation as the world’s top spa destination, Bali will host the first international exhibition on spa and wellness products on March 9 to 11 at the Sanur Paradise Convention Center.
The “Bali International Spa and Wellness Expo 2011” is expected to further promote the uniqueness of Balinese traditional spa and massage and preserve its traditional healing method, usadha, as well as other conventional jamu concoctions from other parts of Indonesia.
“Spa and wellness has become a popular tourism element. This business is booming worldwide. We hold this event to show the world that Bali deserves the title as the world’s best spa destination,” organizing committee head Felix Rusli said at a media conference.
“Indonesia, having abundant herbal heritages, will make the most of this event to promote its specialization in jamu and herbs.”
“This event is also a good opportunity for small and medium enterprises to promote their spas, jamu and beauty products, to build networking with their buyers from all over the world,” he added.
The resort island surprisingly won one of the world’s most prestigious awards in tourism as “The Best Spa Destination in the World” by SENSE Magazine during an international tourism exhibition in Berlin in 2009, beating other nominators including Fiji, Guam, China and Thailand.
In the same event, Bali also earned “The Five-Star Diamond Lifetime Achievement Award” and “The Sense Wellness Person” awarded by the president of American Academy of Hospitality, Joe Cinque.
Seventy exhibitors will participate in the expo, mostly from Indonesia. Overseas enterprises will come from France, Japan, Italy.
The three-day event includes seminars and workshops for therapists, managers and spa owners.
“Therapists can join sessions on the standard of massage therapies, while managers and owners are invited to discuss health and spa business management. They can also learn how to get their products registered by the BPOM [Food and Drugs Agency] to be able to compete in the free trade era,” Felix said.
