Kutacane (ANTARA Aceh) - The Aceh chapter of the Indonesian Travel Bureaus Association (ASITA) has expressed its full support towards the implementation of Sail Sabang 2017 and is determined to make the event a success.
"We are ready to play our role. We have held coordinating meetings several times," Totok Julianto, secretary of the Aceh ASITA, said here on Wednesday.
The 2017 Sail Sabang will be organized on Weh Island, Aceh Province, from Nov 28 to Dec 5, 2017, with the aim of promoting tourist destinations in Aceh, in particular, and in Indonesia, in general.
President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) is scheduled to officially open the sail event on Pasiran beach, Sabang Gulf, where a cargo harbor will be built.
The international sail event will include performances of mass traditional dances, Sabang Wonderful Expo, Aceh Fun Dive, International Aerobatic Show, International Diving Competition, and a Coffee and Culinary Festival.
Indonesian warships, such as KRI Bima Suci and KRI Dewa Ruci, will also participate in the event.
The activities will be held in Sabang Gulf, Sabang Fair, Gapang Resort, and Titik O Kilometer (The Zero Kilometer Point).
The Tourism Ministry has planned to make Sail Sabang event as a momentum to launch a Sabang-Phuket-Langkawi shipping route, which is considered as a golden triangle axis.
Tourism Minister Arief Yahya hoped that the event would help promote Weh Island as a marine tourist resort of international standard.
The opening of Phuket-Langkawi-Sabang route is expected to boost yacht or cruiser business.
"We have reached a cooperation agreement with the marinas in Phuket and Langkawi. We have to make the goal to open a triangle route with Sabang a success," the minister noted.
According to data of the Aceh central bureau of statistics, the number of foreign tourist arrivals in Aceh during the January-August period was 20,818 people, a drop of 27.61 percent from the same period in the previous year.
In general, however, the number of tourist arrivals in Aceh has increased, thanks to domestic tourists.
Julianto believed that most visitors attending the Sail Sabang peak ceremony next month will be domestic tourists.
Aceh travel bureaus fully support Sail Sabang
Kamis, 26 Oktober 2017 7:01 WIB