Travel Warning And Impact To NTB, Dispar Ensures Tourism Remains Normal

Head of the NTB Provincial Tourism Office, Ahmad Nur Aulia. (ANTARA)

JAKARTA - The travel warning issue issued by a number of countries often raises concerns for the tourism sector.

This precautionary appeal, although temporary, could affect foreign tourists' perceptions of the security of destinations in Indonesia, including in West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) which is intensively promoting themselves as superior destinations. However, field conditions show that tourism activities in NTB are still running normally.

Head of the NTB Provincial Tourism Office, Ahmad Nur Aulia, emphasized that tourist destinations in his area will continue to operate as usual despite travel warnings from several countries following demonstrations in a number of parts of Indonesia.

"From the results of observations and reports from districts/cities, tourist activities remain normal as usual," he said as quoted by ANTARA.

Aulia said that until now there have been no reports of tourists shortening their vacation period due to the situation. In fact, the flow of transportation to NTB is still full.

"Today I am in Bali attending the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Indonesia CHANDI 2025, the full Lombok Denpasar flight, as well as the Padang Bai'Lombok fastboat this afternoon is also fully occupied," he explained.

Regarding the postponement of a number of events in Mandalika, he emphasized that it was not an cancellation, but a reschedule. "The organizers are only delaying, not canceling. The information will still be held in 2025," he said.

Seeing the gradually conducive condition, Dispar NTB is optimistic that the tourism sector will continue to grow. "God willing, this delay will recover gradually. Information from airports and ports shows no significant decline," added Aulia.

Meanwhile, the Governor of NTB, Lalu Muhamad Iqbal, emphasized that the area he leads is safe and friendly for tourists. He explained that travel warning is just an appeal to increase vigilance, not a ban on visiting.

"The warning travel is like parents who remind their children to be careful on the road. So, it's not something that should be exaggerated. The dangerous thing is tire travel, if it's forbidden," said Iqbal recently.

As a former spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he invites the people of NTB to actively spread positive information about regional security conditions. "Let us show that NTB remains safe, conducive, and deserves to be visited by tourists, both domestic and foreign," he said.

It is known that a number of countries such as the United States, Malaysia, Singapore, France, Japan, the Philippines, the UK, and Canada had issued travel warnings following demonstrations in several parts of Indonesia last weekend.