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City administrations urged to develop yacht, cruise ship industries
The Tourism Ministry is encouraging city administrations to develop areas that are often passed by yachts and cruise ships.
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Wae Cicu Beach in Labuan Bajo, Flores, East Nusa Tenggara. (JP/Wienda Parwitasari)
C
ity administrations have been encouraged by the Tourism Ministry’s maritime tourist industry development acceleration task force to actively develop areas that are commonly passed by yachts and cruise ships.
Indroyono, the head of the task force, said on Monday during a Wonderful Sail to Indonesia 2018 press conference that yacht and cruise ship schedules were released annually, allowing cities to plan events around those dates.
He recommended that administrations capitalize on the presence of tourist ships by holding special events such as festivals, culinary events, tours and more.
“Empower the youths who live [in tourist areas],” he said.
According to kompas.com, yachties usually visited remote areas around the archipelago, such as Buton Islands and Wakatobi in Southeast Sulawesi, Kumai in Central Kalimantan, Banda Island in Maluku and Labuan Bajo in East Nusa Tenggara.
Read also: Sail Indonesia 2018 to promote Sumbawa marine tourism
To visit those islands, they usually enter through big port cities, such as South Bangka in Bangka-Belitung province, Ambon in Maluku, Bintan Island and Tanjung Pinang in Riau Islands, Sorong in West Papua and Tanjung Benoa in Bali.
Meanwhile, luxury cruise liner Genting Dream lists several locations, such as Jakarta, Surabaya and North Bali, as its ports of call.
Task force member Raymond T. Lesmana said that in the Wonderful Sail event, around 210 tourists from 70 yachts sail to Indonesia for around five months. They have a daily budget of around Rp 650,000 (US$45.37) per person.
Local food is considered inexpensive for yachties, priced at Rp 20,000 on average, while Australian yachties spend around Rp 100,000 per meal.
That being said, Raymond suggested that city administrations train locals, package food nicer and improve services. (jes/kes)
