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Indonesia awarded favorite destination in ASEAN
Two surfers enjoy a sunny day at Green Bowl Beach in southern Bali
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Two surfers enjoy a sunny day at Green Bowl Beach in southern Bali. (Bali Daily/Peni Widarti) (Bali Daily/Peni Widarti)
Two surfers enjoy a sunny day at Green Bowl Beach in southern Bali. (Bali Daily/Peni Widarti)
Indonesia has been declared ASEAN's favorite destination by the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA).
Deputy Tourism Minister for overseas promotion I Gde Pitana said that he would lead the Indonesian delegation to receive the award at the MATTA Fair in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, which will be held Sept. 4-6.
The delegation will include 80 tourism industry businesspeople and 10 tourism agency heads.
"We will also participate in the event to attract more tourists from Malaysia as well as other participating countries," said Pitana on Thursday as quoted by Antara news agency.
The even will be hosted in the 207-square meter Indonesia Pavilion. On exhibit will be various tourist destinations in Sumatra, Java, Bali, Sulawesi, Nusa Tenggara and Papua. There will also be cultural performances such as traditional dances, Sasando music (an indigenous instrument) and umbrella painting activities.
Visitors will also be invited to taste Indonesian coffee from Toraja and Sumatra, including the gourmet Luwak coffee, and enjoy traditional spa treatments.
At the opening ceremony on Friday, the Indonesia Pavilion will feature rampak kendang, a traditional West Java percussion ensemble, and the country's latest video about tourism.
"More than 1.27 million Malaysians visited Indonesia last year. Our target is to attract up to 1.7 million this year," said Pitana. (kes)
