Hotel sector gloomy in tourist center

Hotel sector gloomy in tourist center

YOGYAKARTA (JP): Hotel occupancy rates in this touristic town
rose to 30 percent for June and July, still considerably lower
than the 45 percent rate recorded for the same period last year
and not enough to lift the industry out of its doldrums, an
official said over the weekend.

The head of the provincial tourist office, Sugeng, said the
number of visitors here had sharply declined since January, when
the rate dropped 31.07 percent compared to January 1997. In
February, the number of tourists visiting this ancient town
dropped 57.35 percent compared to the same month the year before,
with March clocking in a 67.23 percent fall, April a 61.3 percent
drop and May a whopping 75.11 percent nosedive.

"During June and July, however, we saw an increase," Sugeng
said. "If there are more cars parked in front of hotels, that
means more visitors."

A hotel operator, however, said the increase in hotel
occupancy rates in June and July was due to the recent school
vacation. "We had more domestic visitors because of the school
holiday, but foreign tourists were still rare," he said.

Sugeng said Yogyakarta now had 9,000 hotel rooms -- 3,000 of
which were star-rated. In order to reach a 50 percent occupancy
rate by visitors staying for two days, Yogyakarta needs to lure
472,600 foreign tourists and 1,575,360 domestic visitors yearly.

Last year, only 277,000 tourists visited the town.

The tourist industry has been suffering over the past two
years due to trip cancellations for various reasons, from reports
of rioting and forest fire smog to the economic downturn in
general.

Sugeng said his office had suggested that Adisucipto Airport
be opened for international flights. "The number of visitors here
depends on those visiting Bali and Jakarta. In order to increase
the number of visitors, we should let foreign tourists fly
directly here," he said.

Stefanus Indarto, the chairman of the local branch of the
Indonesian Association of Hotels and Restaurants, supported
Sugeng's proposal.

"The existing infrastructure is adequate to turn Adisucipto
into an international airport," he said.

Sugeng also said he had urged the Ministry of Communications
to increase flight frequency from Yogyakarta by Fokker-100s to 10
times per day, to Bali 4 times a day and to Surabaya 3 times a
day. "If this suggestion is met, I'm sure the number of visitors
to Yogyakarta would increase," he said. (23)