Indonesia’s Ministry of Tourism is continuing its efforts to increase the number of Middle East tourists visiting Indonesia, through its continuing participation in Arabian Travel Market (ATM) Dubai 2019 in Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Center, Dubai.
“The Middle East market is important for Indonesia. From a statistical perspective, it is encouraging to review our arrivals this past year,” said Ridwaz Hassan, Consul General of Indonesia in Dubai. “In 2018, there were 15.8 million foreign tourists who came to Indonesia which was a 12.58 % increase over 2017. Our arrival target for 2019 is 20 million visitors. The Ministry of Tourism of The Republic of Indonesia aims to target 5 million international visitors out of 20 million international visitors or 25% as Halal Tourism visitors,” he said.
“Recognizing the importance of developing Halal Tourism in Indonesia, we are proud to announce that Indonesia is top of the world’s halal tourist destinations according to the MasterCard-Crescent Rating Global Muslim Travel Index (GMTI) 2019. It is not surprising that this award has been won by Indonesia, a country with the largest Muslim population in the world and where Halal food, clothing and accommodation practices are common.
CEO Crescent Rating and Halal Trip Fazal Bahardeen said that Indonesia’s achievement resulted from a series of actions carried out by its tourism ministry, such as by investing in the tourism and travel industry and developing halal-grade infrastructures for Muslim tourists. Last year, Indonesia ranked second in the 2018 GMTI,” Ridwan Hassan during an interview to Holiday Guide magazine.
Lombok: Gaining International Recognition
Lombok in West Nusa Tenggara has been named the Best Halal Tourist Destination on the 2019 Indonesia Muslim Travel Index (IMTI), followed by destinations in Aceh, Riau, Riau Islands and Jakarta. On the latest index released, Lombok received a score of 70, the highest among the assessed top 10 halal tourist destinations in Indonesia, conducted by the Tourism Ministry in cooperation with MasterCard-Crescent Rating.
The Ministry uses the GMTI global standard criteria for the IMTI assessment, namely access, communication, environment and services.
Ridwan Hasssan said each criteria consisted of three aspects. He gave an example that to assess the access criteria, the examiners would consider visa requirements, air connectivity and transportation infrastructure. “The communication criteria consists of outreach, ease of communication and digital presence,” Hassan said, adding that the environment criteria referred to safety and culture, ease of visitor arrivals and climate.
There was a large delegation comprising of 85 travel agencies and hotels (excluding provincial tourism authorities and tourism boards) that tended the Arabian Travel Market – occupying more than 450 square meters at its stand. The Stand is designed with double decked Phinisi (traditional sailing boat originally from Makassar, Southeast Sulawesi) and a replica Sasak house of Lombok.
“New Bali” concept for 10 priority destinations
Bali has often been chosen as the ‘world’s best island’ in surveys by many different travel magazines and websites.
The Indonesian government has announced 10 “New Bali” destination brands namely Bandung, Bali, Jakarta, Riau Islands, Joglosemar (Yogyakarta, Surakarta and Semarang) – in Central Java, the Coral Wonders (Wakatobi, Bunaken and Raja Ampat), Medan, Makassar, Lombok and Banyuwangi.
For example, there is Labuan Bajo in East Nusa Tenggara – gateway to the Komodo islands; Borobudur in Central Java – where visitors can marvel at the glorious heritage from the past; Mandalika in West Nusa Tenggara – a destination for those who enjoy water sports; and Lake Toba in North Sumatra – the largest volcanic lake in the world, and home to the unique Batak culture.
Six other “New Bali” destinations are also ready to welcome you, namely: Tanjung Kelayang in Belitung; Tanjung Lesung in Banten; the Thousand Islands off Jakarta; Bromo in East Java; Wakatobi in South East Sulawesi; and Morotai in the North Moluccas.
About Indonesia
The Republic of Indonesia is the largest archipelago in the world, comprising more than 17,000 tropical islands fringed with white sandy beaches. Among the best-known islands are Bali, Java, Kalimantan (formerly Borneo), Papua, Sulawesi (formerly Celebes), Sumatra, and the Maluku Islands (also known as the Moluccas, the original fabled Spice Islands).
The destination offers richly diverse cultures and heritage, beautiful beaches and ecotourism along with green rainforests to trek through and deep blue pristine seas to dive and swim, and the warmest, most hospitable people on earth.
