To be developed this year, the hotel will also be used as a meeting, incentive, convention and exhibition (MICE) venue, HIN president director Iswandi Said told the press.

The company is still looking for investors to fund the project.

"This is HIN's role in supporting the five super-priority destinations," Iswandi said during a media briefing in Jakarta on Jan. 30. "We have already prepared a plot of land for the five-star hotel.”

President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo is seeking to improve Indonesia’s tourism and spur economic growth by developing five super-priority destinations. Aside from Mandalika, the other destinations include Toba Lake in North Sumatra, Borobudur in Central Java, Labuan Bajo in East Nusa Tenggara and Likupang in North Sulawesi.

Last year, tourism contributed 5.5 percent to the country's GDP, Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Wishnutama was quoted by kontan.co.id as saying on Wednesday. The figure is a 9 percent drop from 2014.

The government is, therefore, seeking to develop basic infrastructure to improve connectivity, water treatment facilities and other supporting facilities in the five destinations this year. The Public Works and Housing Ministry has allocated Rp 7.8 trillion (US$568.50 million) for infrastructure development in the destinations.

To support the accessibility of the Mandalika destination, the government will develop a road linking the coastal resort area with Lombok International Airport. It is also developing roads in Lake Toba and Borobudur temple, as well as procuring a water supply facility in Labuan Bajo.

HIN is conducting a study on the potential to develop a hotel in Likupang as part of its involvement in the super-priority destination program, Iswandi added.

"If it is ready, we may build a hotel there," he said. "We will also give support in the form of human resources [to manage the destination]."

HIN has developed hotels in Labuan Bajo, Lake Toba and near Borobudur temple.

The Inaya Bay Komodo in Labuan Bajo was built in partnership with state-owned ferry operator PT ASDP Indonesia Ferry. The company is also planning to upgrade its Inna Parapat hotel in Lake Toba to a four-star hotel.

Operating 14 hotels across Java, Sumatra and Bali, HIN is allocating Rp 172 billion from its budget for renovating its hotel rooms, according to Iswandi.

"Our hotels should be able to live up to guests' expectations," he said.

The number of guests staying at HIN's hotels slightly increased to 500,000 last year from 492,000 in 2018, according to a statement released on Thursday. However, the company booked a decline in occupancy rate, the ratio between booked rooms and the total rooms available, to 68.9 percent last year from 75.5 percent in 2017. (dfr)

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