Holidaymakers 'cheated' by Ancol theme park

JAKARTA (JP): Many holidaymakers, including those from out of town, say they feel cheated by the closure of Dunia Fantasi theme park, a fact they only learned after paying their entrance fees to Ancol Dreamland in North Jakarta.

One case in point was Ratih, a 30-year old who came with her family all the way from Makassar, South Sulawesi to spend the long school Ramadhan holiday.

Ratih said she went to Dunia Fantasi (Fantasy World) on Saturday with six members of her family, and paid Rp 40,000 for the entrance tickets.

The announcement that it is closed until Dec. 21 is only posted on the Dunia Fantasi gate, not at the main Ancol gate where would-be visitors purchase tickets.

"The management should place the announcement at the front gate," Ratih said.

She said she never read anything about the closure in any newspaper that the theme park proprietors claimed had printed the announcement.

Many other would-be visitors were also caught unawares by the closure on Saturday.

The management of Dunia Fantasi said the theme park was closed on Nov. 27 for a major overhaul of all its facilities. It is scheduled to reopen on Dec. 22.

The place will open on time ahead of the Christmas, Idul Fitri and New Year's holidays, always a busy time for the theme park.

Jakarta's other theme park, the smaller Taman Ria Senayan in Central Jakarta, is open for business as usual.

The Indonesia in Miniature Park (TMII), another popular site for holidaymakers, is cutting back on its opening hours, closing two hours earlier than usual at 3 p.m. every day. (04)