Indonesia lures tourists with 'free' services
JAKARTA (JP): Foreign travelers arriving in Indonesia today will be entitled to transportation, one night in a hotel and a meal all for free as part of the government's campaign to lure foreign tourists back to the country.
Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture Marzuki Usman said yesterday that foreign travelers would also be allowed to visit tourist resorts and recreation sites for free during "Happy Day", a day of free services launched as part of the Let's Go Indonesia campaign.
"With the free services, we want people around the world to know that Indonesia's travel and tourist industry is ready to welcome them back," Marzuki said when announcing the date of Happy Day.
Each tourist arriving in the country through Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta International Airport and Bali's Ngurah Rai Airport today will receive one free night in a participating hotel, one free meal at the hotel, one free tour and free entrance to recreational parks.
Upon arrival, foreign tourists will also be provided with free transportation from the airport to their hotels using Bluebird taxis.
Tourists arriving on Garuda Indonesia planes will each be entitled to a complimentary return ticket to any domestic destination.
Besides Jakarta and Bali, the offer is also good at nine other tourist destinations. They are Bandung in West Java, Semarang and Surakarta in Central Java, Lombok in West Nusa Tenggara, Batam and Bintan in Riau, Medan in North Sumatra, Manado in North Sulawesi and Yogyakarta.
The offer is valid for foreign visitors either on vacation or business trips.
Foreign tourists already in the country, excluding those in Jakarta and Bali, are entitled to all of the above services except for accommodation and meals.
Marzuki said visitors would also be entitled to a 50 percent discount on any future Garuda domestic flights if they traveled on Garuda Indonesia on Happy Day.
Foreign tourists arriving at the 11 destinations who have prepaid accommodation and/or other services will be issued vouchers entitling them to the same services at a later date.
The program is sponsored by the Indonesian Hotel and Restaurant Association (PHRI), the Association of Indonesian Tour and Travel Agencies (ASITA), the Indonesian Tourism Promotion Board, the Association of Indonesian Tourist Attractions (Putri), the Indonesian National Air Carriers Association (INACA) and national flag carrier Garuda Indonesia.
PHRI chairman Pontjo Sutowo said at least 15,000 foreign tourists would be able to take advantage of the free services on Happy Day.
"The promotion is an image campaign and we don't expect it will immediately increase tourist arrivals. Our main target is to bring back arrivals to the normal level of five million visitors by the end of this year," Pontjo said.
Marzuki said Happy Day would cost participating companies a total of US$10 million.
The country's tourist sector, badly hit since last year, went into an even deeper slump during and following the May riots, which prompted many foreign countries to issue travel warnings on Indonesia to their citizens.
The government last month launched the Let's Go Indonesia campaign, its latest move to lure back visitors to the country, which has been hit by a series of political, economic and natural disasters.
Director General of Tourism Andi Mappisammeng said earlier this month that Indonesia might have to reduce its 1998 tourist revenue target of $5.75 billion if political uncertainty continued.
He said the government had targeted foreign tourist arrivals for the year at 4.6 million, a 10 percent decline from the 1997 level. In the first half of this year it only totaled 1.4 million. (gis)