Tourists cancel visit to Yogyakarta due to bombing
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.