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Ternate-Tidore invites Spanish tourists to relive 16th century trade expedition route
Tidore Festival, which peaks on April 10-11th, will focus on the main theme of ‘Nurturing tradition, emboldening the maritime nation’s identity’. The festival will also celebrate Tidore’s anniversary by going back to its cultural roots, as well as developing and preserving the historical heritage.
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Breathtaking view of the Kahatola Waterfalls in Ternate. (Shutterstock/Muslianshah Masrie)
T
ourism Minister Arief Yahya along with Tidore’s Sultan Huseinsyah and Tidore Mayor Ali Ibrahim launched the Tidore Festival on Wednesday, April 5th, at the Tourism Ministry’s Soesilo Soedarman Hall, Sapta Pesona Building, Jakarta.
Tidore Festival, which peaks on April 10-11th, will focus on the main theme of ‘Nurturing tradition, emboldening the maritime nation’s identity’. The festival will also celebrate Tidore’s anniversary by going back to its cultural roots, as well as developing and preserving the historical heritage.
The Ternate and Tidore tourism envoy traveled to Spain to promote Northern Maluku’s tourist destinations and celebrate Spain’s special ties and history with the two regions. The event was held in a luncheon at the Indonesian Embassy in Madrid, attended by select Spanish tour operators that have Indonesian destinations on their roster.
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The councillor of the Tidore regency council (DPRD), Merlisa Adam Marsaoly, who helmed the tourism and cultural envoy to Spain said in the year 1521, the Spanish expedition led by Juan Sebastian El Cano had a layover in Tidore and purchased spices from the locals. As a remembrance of the El Cano expedition in Tidore, the Spanish Embassy in Jakarta built a monument in Tidore in 1993, adding to existing Spanish-built structures such as Torre Fort, and the ones located in Ternate; Kalamata Fort and Tolukko Fort, which were built in 1606.
Spanish tour operators have expressed great interest in Tidore’s many cultural traditions, which include Tari Persembahan (welcoming dance), Legu Gam (torch festival) and the Jailolo festival (fishermen’s festival). Drawing attention, Tidore and Ternate’s natural beauty also include the underwater wonders of Halmahera and Morotai, among others.
The Indonesian government has also shown an appreciation to Spain as the Indonesian tourism industry has seen a 150% increase in visits from Spanish tourists to Indonesia, from 25,500 tourists in 2011 to 67,988 in 2016. The Indonesian ambassador to Spain, Yuli Mumpuni Widarso, said the increase was achieved due to Spanish tour operators’ creativity in developing vacation products to highlight Indonesia’s tourism assets, such as cultural destinations, outdoor adventures, the culinary arts, shopping destinations and sports, which include cycling, surfing and diving.
Read also: Festival to enliven Jatigede Dam in Sumedang
Aside from tourism potentials, the Indonesian Embassy in Madrid also invited Spanish infrastructure investment consultants to visit Ternate and Tidore to examine investment opportunities in the tourism infrastructure sector (resorts), sea transportation (ports and passenger boats-building) and fisheries (fish-canning factories).
At the event, the Indonesian government also announced several tourism B2B events that will be held in a number of cities in Indonesia throughout 2017, such as the Jakarta Astindo Fair, the Yogya Istimewa Travel Exchange in April, the Yogyakarta Travel Mart in May, the Bali & Beyond Travel Fair in June and the Makassar Celebes Travel Mart in November. (asw)
