The Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy/Tourism Agency and Creative Economy hosted the second international webinar on Indonesia Tourism Series on the Thailand and Indochina market called “Yogya Alright: The Next Stop for Pleasure and Prayer”. The purpose of this event is to update Indonesia’s readiness to encounter the new normal travel era, especially in Yogyakarta. A total of 40 participants attended this one-hour session.
The panel moderated Nikki Phinyapincha – Visit Indonesia Tourism Officer (VITO) Thailand and Indochina, and has two speakers namely Hetty Herawati – Director of Marketing and Service Director PT. TWC (Taman Wisata Candi Borobudur, Prambanan & Ratu Boko), and Prinya Patharaphum – Chief Operating Officer Miramar Tour. As a keynote speaker is Vinsensius Jemadu, MBA, Director of Tourism Marketing for Region I (Indonesia, ASEAN, Australia, and Oceania, the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy of the Republic of Indonesia.
The first session started with an opening remark by Vinsensius Jemadu who explained the objective of this webinar is to inform what is going on in Indonesia, especially in Yogya and how Yogya is ready for the new normal. Vinsen said, “Covid-19 can’t change our spirit and commitment, we have to move on. Let’s walk side by side, let’s unite together against covid-19. Yogya, a destination for leisure and prayer, has a lot of things to offer to you. Yogya has Malioboro street where people sell handicrafts”. Yogya is known as the city of handicrafts or souvenirs, many destinations order handicrafts from Yogya. Yogya is ready to adopt a new culture in the tourism sector.
The second session continued by Hetty Herawati who shared information about the current situation in Yogya. Yogyakarta is a cultural hub with stunning architecture and a spiritual sensibility. The ancient Hindu temples of Prambanan, the Sultan’s palace, beautiful beaches, caves, forest & mountains. Borobudur is the largest Buddhist monument in the world. The best things to do in Borobudur are Vesak at Borobudur, The Amazing Religious Festival; Borobudur Nite and Lanterns Festival; Sunrise, and Breakfast at Dagi, and Borobudur Sunrise. Cultural attractions at Borobudur Temple are a reflection of the interaction of civilized society with Budha religion, culture, dance, legend, artwork, and economy which is an authentic experience of ancestral relics kept and served for tourists to get the best experience. Prambanan is the tallest and most beautiful Hindu temple complex in the world and the largest Hindu compound in south-east Asia. Some events in Prambanan are Tawur Agung Prambanan, Junior Archaeologist, Ramayana Ballet, and Prambanan Festival: Music, Art, and Culinary. Cultural attractions at Prambanan Temple are a reflection of the interaction of civilized society with Hindu religion, culture, dance, legend, artwork, and economy which is an authentic experience of ancestral relics kept and served for tourists to get the best experience. Ratu Boko Palace, a complex of a number of remaining buildings, located approximately 3 km south of the Prambanan Temple complex, or 5 mins drive from Prambanan. Situated on a hill at an altitude of 196 meters above sea level, 25 ha Ratu Boko displays the attributes as a place of activity or a residential site. Some events in Ratu Boko are Ratu Boko Sunset, Ratu Boko Festival, Ratu Boko Yoga Festival. Yogyakarta also has Keraton (Sultan Palace), the city’s palace complex, is a cultural center with a museum for the Sultan’s artifacts; and Tamansari, a garden chateau with an elaborate series of swimming pools, as a gift for the wives of the King. Many things to do in Yogya, like visiting the famous park named Kalibiru, taking pictures in beautiful caves named Jombang, joining a craft workshop: pottery kasongan, batik workshop, and silver Kota Gede. Yogya is ready for the new normal. Starting from the airport, there are airport task force and health protocols, staffs’ health and protection, clean and sanitized facilities, signage, and flow management. Borobudur as a super destination implemented the new protocol, such as visitor management (signage, capacity), Cleanliness Health Safety (CHS) facility (handwashing, sanitizers, frequent cleaning), customer care in place, cashless and e-ticketing.
The third session was filled by Prinya Patharaphum who pointed out the Thailand’s market insight. As they are experienced in doing the tour for the Thailand market to Indonesia, FIT & GIT types are mostly chosen. FIT in Thai is more seeking new destinations and GIT is only a travel company to do the incentive purpose. The main destinations for the Thai market are Borobudur Temple, Prambanan Temple, Jl. Malioboro shopping street and they love to see the sceneries of Merapi Mountain. Before the pandemic comes, Thai people really like to travel to a new destination, culinary, photo in a beautiful spot and the must one is shopping.
Prinya gave some strategy for how to survive the business in Thailand in the middle of this pandemic. One to do is create its own platform online (to build the product, such as airline ticket, packages tour, information about the best destinations to go). And lastly, Prinya said that Miramar Group is open to collaborating because they have an Onlyx tech company to selling the service in online. Onlyx has an e-commerce system, digital market (online media agency & consultant), payment solution, and travel tech system.
This event is expected to be useful for participants to be able to know the development of readiness that is happening in Indonesia, especially the implementation of CHSE (Hygiene, Health, Safety, and Environmental Sustainability) in Yogyakarta and surrounding areas.
