THE INDONESIA Ministry of Culture and Tourism is holding the Sabang International Regatta (SIR) 2011 to promote Sabang as an international marine tourism destination.
Organised together with the Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam province and Sabang Municipal regional governments, as well as the Indonesia Sailing Association, the regatta will kick off in Phuket on September 12, followed by a rally to Langkawi, before racing to and around Sabang in Aceh till September 25.
Ministry of Culture and Tourism director general of destination development, Firmansyah Rahim, said: “This event is an initial step to attract international yachts to come and see Aceh for themselves. We would like Sabang to become an international marine destination, particularly for sailing, and are planning to make it one of the 18 entry points for sailing boats to Indonesia.”
Aceh vice governor, Muhammad Nazar, said: “The media has only been featuring Aceh on its conflicts and tsunami. These are over now. Aceh is very safe and our crime rate is (one of) the lowest (in the country). We would like this event to be a launch pad for the development of tourism, and we appeal to the central government for its sustainable support in the promotion.”
Mayor of Sabang, Munawar Liza Zainal, said: “Sabang is a duty-free port and the deep sea enables big cruise ships to berth.”
“It takes less than an hour from Langkawi and Phuket to Subang, so there is big potential to develop traffic from these neighbours, which are already popular yachting destinations,” he added.
International tourists to Subang mostly come from The Netherlands, the US, and Malaysia.
At press time, 26 ships from 10 countries have registered their intention to participate in the regatta.
