The calendar of events for Sail Moyo Tambora 2018 is set to be launched in Jakarta on July 14 to 15.

West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) Tourism Agency head Lalu Mohammad Faozal said in Mataram on Tuesday that the launch ceremony would feature a Lombok-Sumbawa cultural parade in the Car Free Day (CFD) area on Jl. Thamrin and Jl. Sudirman in Jakarta.

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Around 140 yachts from 35 countries are expected to pass the Sail Moyo Tambora route. For this year the participants will have started sailing from two different locations, namely Darwin in Australia and Singapore since early June.

The yachts will then gather in Labuan Baju in Flores, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), on Sept. 4 and later head to the location of the highlight of the event in Saleh Bay, which is part of the Samota (Saleh, Moyo, Tambora) minapolitan zone on Sumbawa Island.

The 140 yachts are expected to carry up to four crew, hence the potential of tourist arrivals in NTB could amount to 500 people. They are also expected to boost medium and small businesses in the region by purchasing food and souvenirs at each destination.

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Faozal said at least five regencies and cities in Sumbawa were seeking to promote their tourism potential, namely Sumbawa, West Sumbawa, Dompu and Bima regencies and Bima city.

Meanwhile in Lombok, the participants will visit Medana Resort Yacht Port in North Lombok in the middle of September.

This year, the welcoming ceremony in Lombok will take place in Gili Mas, Sekotong district, West Lombok, in a bid to promote the area that currently hosts the national megaproject Gili Mas Port, which will offer special facilities and a harbor for yachts.

"The peak of the event in Gili Mas will be on Sept. 22," said Faozal. (kes)