Quality time: A family plays at Tanjung Merdeka beach in Makassar, South Sulawesi. (Antara/Yusran Uccang)

At an international level, Indonesia still ranks in the top-10 favorite tourist destinations in Asia.

According to the latest UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) rankings, Indonesia was ranked the eighth most popular destination in the Asia-Pacific region, behind Hong Kong (3), Thailand (4), Macau (5), Singapore (6) and South Korea (7).

Despite these figures, is Indonesia a real player at home?

The Association of Indonesian Travel Agencies’ (Asita) Jakarta branch vice chairman Rudiana said the number of outbound tourists in 2011 was almost 7 million, a 20 percent increase from the 5.1 million recorded the previous year.

Last year’s outbound-tourist figure almost matched the figure for inbound tourists, which reached 7.65 million, Rudiana added.

The removal of the exit tax in January 2011 and the rise in the number of budget airlines flying from Indonesian cities to neighboring countries are said to be the key factors behind the increase in the number of Indonesians traveling overseas.

Previously, Indonesians were required to pay a Rp 2.5 million (US$275) exit tax when traveling abroad by air or Rp 1 million by sea.

Rudiana, who is also the CEO of Wita Tours, said that popular destinations for Indonesians included Asian countries such as Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and China.

So has Indonesia lost its charm among local travelers? If you are an Indonesian, which one would you prefer if you had millions of rupiah to spend on traveling: flying all the way from Jakarta to North Sulawesi’s Manado or going to Singapore?

“A few years ago, I would have definitely chosen to go to Singapore. I thought, ‘Why would I spend money to travel all the way to Manado when I could have already been in a foreign country for the same amount?’” said Daisy S. Rachmat, a traveler who resides in Jakarta.

“For many Indonesians, traveling abroad is more prestigious. You might have visited Lombok (West Nusa Tenggara), but people are more impressed if you have visited other countries such as Singapore or Hong Kong,” she added.

It does not help that flight tickets (from Jakarta) to Sulawesi frequently cost much more than flying to Singapore or Malaysia.

“Many [Indonesians] prefer traveling to other countries because they can easily find info about a destination and search for hostels or hotels on the Internet. In short, everything can be discovered in just one click,” said another traveler, Hetty Rahardja.

In terms of remote tourism destinations, there are times when travelers do not have a clue about how to get there or about accommodations.

“They take the chance of directly going to the area even though they have no idea where to go or where to stay. This is a very risky situation,” she said.

Eva Fedele of the Jejak Kaki community and travel organizer agreed.

“Traveling abroad is much easier because you can get all the information online. Traveling in Indonesia is tougher,” noted Eva, adding that her community focused more on local trips, instead of foreign tours, saying that the trip organizer was established to raise people’s love of Indonesia.

Hetty urged regional governments to make some real efforts to improve infrastructure and facilities to help boost local tourism.

“We wish local governments would upgrade public facilities in tourism spots, especially toilets, also fixing damaged roads and improving public transportation so the places are more accessible for visitors,” she went on.

Lilies Lestari also expressed her concern, saying that the regional governments should actively promote their potential and educate local tour guides to be more professional so they know how to treat visitors well.

The obstacles, however, do not dampen travelers’ spirits in exploring the beauty of the country.

Daisy herself, for instance, is now a different person. She claimed she loved Indonesia more and did not mind spending money to travel around the country.

The turning point came when she decided to travel with a trip organizer, who mostly took travelers to local destinations, places she had never seen before.

“I’ve visited many places overseas and I think that Indonesia has more beautiful places to see and be explored,” Daisy said.

Hetty echoed the sentiments. “Indonesia is still the best and is my favorite tourism destination. It has mountains, beaches and many other natural places, from East to West,” she said.

It seems like the government should thank inbound travelers and independent travel organizers for promoting the country either through social media or by word of mouth.

Also thanks are due to a group of students from UIN Syarief Hidayatullah University who have just launched a travel guide application called Nusantara Beta, which is also described as a location-based mobile application for national tourism. They have recently released an updated version of Nusantara Beta.

The application’s main function is to inform its users of the nearest tourist attractions in the archipelago and how to get there.

Inspired by the social networking website foursquare, the free application is aimed at introducing Indonesia, in terms of its history, culture and language, as well as guiding its users, explained Taufan Arfianto, Nusantara Beta’s chief executive officer.

It has facilities such as Google Map directions, brief details on a site’s history and qualities, as well as information on various provinces in the archipelago.

According to Taufan, the Nusantara Beta team currently has data for 600 tourist sites and the data comes from the team’s own sources as well as from the Tourism and Creative Economy Ministry.

List of some trip organizers:
Jejak Kaki: jejakaki.multiply.com; facebook.com/pages/Jejak-Kaki/221004299433; Mailing List: jejakkaki@yahoogroups.com
Lintas Wisata: facebook.com/lintaswisata.organizer; Email: lintaswisata.organizer@yahoo.com
Ceria Traveller: facebook.com/ceria.adventure; www.ceriatraveller.com

— JP/Triwik Kurniasari

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