Tourists cancel visit to Yogyakarta due to bombing

Sri Wahyuni, The Jakarta Post, Yogyakarta

Some hotels in the historic city of Yogyakarta reported cancellations by tourists following Thursday's bomb blast at the JW Marriot Hotel in Jakarta, but some hotels played down the impact of the attack.

In the wake of the attack, four-star Novotel Hotel on Jl. Jend. Sudirman received cancellation notices from two different groups of tourists from France and the Netherlands, each consisting of some 20 to 25 people, who initially planned to visit the city this month.

Similarly, Ruba Graha Hotel on Jl. Mangkuyudan has also received two cancellation notices for the same reason just hours after the bombing. One was from a group of 15 Dutch tourists and the other was from a group of some 10 tourists from Suriname.

"I've also received a report saying that some tourist groups from Japan have also canceled. But, I'm not sure about the number," Stef B. Indarto, chairman of Yogyakarta's Indonesian Hotel and Restaurant Association (PHRI) told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

Some hotels, however, said despite the bombing, business remained normal.

"Even under normal conditions, visits are often canceled," five-star Melia Purosani Hotel's public relations (PR) manager Endah Sosiawanti said.

Five-star Sheraton Mustika Hotel and Spa's PR manager Bambang WS concurred, saying the bombing would not have a significant impact on the hotel business, because most hotels in Yogyakarta have been focusing on domestic tourists.

"I believe the impact of the Marriott bombing will not be as severe as the Bali bombing because, following the Bali bombing, we cut our dependence on foreign tourists," he said.

Other hotels insisted that the attack would cause an unfavorable impact on the hotel business, which is now showing signs of recovery.

"It is indeed deplorable that the bombing occurred at the time when we were witnessing some good signs in the hotel business," said Novotel Hotel's PR manager Erni Kusmastuti.

Novotel had been enjoying a significant rise in the number of foreign guests, when the terrorist attack occurred at the Marriot. The 200-room, four-star hotel recorded an occupancy rate of 70 percent with some 25 percent of guests being tourists.

Stef of the PHRI confirmed the increasing trend, saying that, prior to the Marriot bombing, the tourism industry in Yogyakarta was expected to start recovering by the end of this year.

"Now, with the Marriott bombing, I'm sure we will need more time to recover," Stef said.

Yogyakarta now has some 9,500 hotel rooms. Prior to the economic crisis in 1997, some 350,000 foreign tourists visited the city in a year.