Tourist handbooks

Tourist handbooks

From Neraca.

In the year 2000 Indonesia is predicted to be a major tourist
destination in Southeast Asia. This is good news for me since I
work for a tourist related company. Therefore, I welcome the
government's plan which will transform the approaching millennium
into a development objective.

I was happy to learn last year that Indonesia had attracted
four million foreign tourists who visited regional tourist sites.
This number did not include domestic visitors whose figure is
much larger.

Something, however, is troubling my mind and it is related to
the regional tourist service. It has come to my attention that
there are no regional tourist guidebooks available in book shops.
Only a small number of guidebooks are available in major
bookstores. Domestic tourists like to travel, but do not know how
to go about it. It would be nice if citizens could take a trip
now and then without having to use the services of a travel
agent.

Without tourist handbooks, attractive tourist destinations are
only accessible through travel agencies.

I understand that tourist guidebooks are only printed for a
limited group planning to see tourist sites, and therefore they
are limited. This sort of reading material also does not attract
many buyers.

I believe tourist related departments such as the Department
of Tourism, Post and Telecommunications, or the Indonesian
Tourism Promotion Board should print more handbooks. They could
be distributed through book shops at a low price.

I firmly believe that tourism should not be a monopoly of
travel agencies.

PUTU SWANDARU

Jakarta