Hotels' dual rate policy comes under scrutiny

JAKARTA (JP): The number of hotels and entertainment places in the capital adopting different rates for services for local and foreign customers has been growing since the economic crisis hit the country in 1997.

Much more, the gap in price has become wider with time. As a result, numerous foreigners find it hard to understand the motives of local businessmen applying a dual pricing system because such racial practices will drive away tourists and foreign investors from the country.

Many hotels and parks charge foreigners double the price charged to their local customers.

British woman, Amanda Jil Amoy, said the dual pricing system adopted by owners of certain places was discriminative and unfair.

"That (the policy) is so stupid, you can't judge that others have plenty of money just because they are expatriates. There are a lot of Indonesians, who are richer than foreigners," she said.

Amanda said there is an impression that local businesses have a tendency to take advantage of foreign tourists.

"Tourists will then have a bad impression towards Indonesia and they will choose other destinations like Malaysia and Thailand instead," she said on Saturday.

According to Amanda, people should receive equal treatment.

Singaporean Herbert Liem agreed with Amanda.

"It's a stupid and crazy decision. How can the government allow the businesses to carry out such discriminative treatment of foreigners while at the same time they said they need tourists and investors to come here?" he said on Wednesday.

Expatriate Liem cited the grim experience he and his family suffered during a recent trip to the Taman Safari animal park in Cisarua, West Java.

He was stunned when he saw a billboard at the entry gate which stated that the admission fee for a local visitor with the age of five years and above was Rp 15,000, while the price was doubled for a foreigner.

Local visitors below age five are charged Rp 12,000, while those from overseas must pay Rp 25,000.

"It's crazy," Liem said, adding that his family decided to cancel their trip to the park.

When contacted, the park spokesman Julius said that the policy has been effective since May 1998.

"No one has complained to us so far," he said.

"I think many tourist places have adopted the same pricing system. Foreign tourists visiting the Borobudur temple (in Central Java) are charged Rp 80,000 each compared to Rp 5,000 for Indonesian visitors," Julius said.

"You know, their (foreigners) dollars have a good value here," he said, this time laughing.

Or, he added, the foreign visitors could assume that their money had been used for conservation.

Interviewed separately, Krisna Murty, assistant sales manager of Ibis Tamarin hotel on Jl. Wahid Hasyim, Central Jakarta, said that previously the rate at the hotel was fixed at US$79 for both local and foreign customers.

"To survive the economic crisis, we set the rate in rupiah. For Indonesians and expatriates possessing the Temporary Stay Permit (KITAS), the rate is Rp 198,000 while foreign visitors must pay Rp 300,000 per night," she said on Saturday.

Foreign guests, she said, deserved the high rate due to the great value of their U.S. currency.

Larger gaps in hotel rates can be found at bigger hotels, such as the Kempinski Hotel Plaza and Hilton International Hotel, both in Central Jakarta.

At Kempinski, the room rate for a superior room for a local resident and foreigners possessing KITAS is Rp 750,000, while for foreigner visitors, it is US$210 (about Rp 1,750,000 at the current exchange rate). The rate for its deluxe room is set at Rp 850,000 for locals and those with KITAS, but US$250 for foreigners.

While at Hilton hotel the rupiah rate for main tower class is Rp 550,000 while the international rate is US$105. For the lagoon class the rate is US$135 for foreigners and Rp 700,000 for locals.

Uraini Umarjadi, public relations director of Kempinski hotel, said that the different rate policy was implemented because foreigners had higher purchasing power.

The dual pricing system also appears at the Bird park of Taman Mini Indonesia Indah (TMII) entertainment park in East Jakarta. The entrance fee for foreigners is set at Rp 8,000 while Indonesians pay Rp 3,000.

Head of TMII's public relations division Dandoel Hardoyono said that based on research, the bird park is a favorite place for foreign tourists.

"Rp 3,000 will be too cheap for foreigners; the value is less than US$1. We have conducted comparative studies to several other countries that the ideal entrance fee internationally is set at $1 at least," said Dandoel.

Some other foreigners, however, welcomed the dual pricing system.

Ala Sulistyono, an Australian national, said: "Come on, it's not a big deal, the difference is indeed still affordable."

She said that complaining on the rate difference was just a small issue.

"We should also understand that Indonesians face many problems," Ala added.

For Hugh Attwater, a British citizen, the policy is understandable "on the condition that the gap is not so big".

He said that most expatriates received higher incomes than their local counterparts.

"I paid Rp 50,000 more than locals when I stayed in a hotel in Surabaya and it was not a big problem," he said.

While for American Mary Jane Edleson the dual pricing should be seen as the struggle of Indonesians to get more income during the economic crisis.

"I can understand that the number of foreign tourists has decreased during the economic crisis and they (hotel and entertainment management) need to broaden local markets and set the rupiah rate. They depend more on local customers now," she said. (ind/bsr)