Maratua Island Will Become A Premium Tourism Destination

Tourist attractions on Maratua Island, Berau Regency, East Kalimantan Province. (HO Adpim East Kalimantan Provincial Government)

Natural tourism such as Maratua Island in East Kalimantan will be declared a premium tourist destination.

Maratua Island, previously known to have beaches and beautiful underwater views, has long been a leading tourist destination for Berau Regency and East Kalimantan Province.

"We want to develop tourism that is not cheap and not cheap. We want tourism classification to be visited massively and certain things," said Akmal as quoted by Antara.

However, Akmal assessed that the tourism potential of Maratua Island could still be developed so that its value would be higher. Tourist areas such as Maratua Island and Kakaban in East Kalimantan, according to him, are suitable to be developed into premium destinations.

"Because according to our experience, massive tourism will tend to have a significant environmental impact," he said.

Akmal said that the local government had temporarily suspended tourism activities to Kakaban Island because the ecosystem in the lake was disrupted.

Thefertilizer in the lake had disappeared for some time, but in recent months it has been seen again. The cause is not known for sure, but is suspected to be related to tourist activities in the lake.

Local governments continue to strive to develop tourism businesses in the East Kalimantan region.

Initiatives have been carried out to promote tourist areas in East Kalimantan such as Maratua, Sangalaki, Kakaban, and Derawan to domestic and foreign tourists. One of them is the holding of the Maratua Jazz Festival.