STRONG sales are expected at the Garuda Indonesia Travel Fair (GITF) this weekend, which for the first time is being held twice a year.
Organised by Garuda Indonesia and Bank Negara Indonesia since 2009, the B2C show will be held from September 12-15 in Jakarta with a target of 80,000 visitors and Rp50 billion (US$4.3 million) in ticket sales.
Erik Meijer, executive vice president marketing and sales, Garuda Indonesia, said: “Initially, we set a target of Rp75 billion in sales from the two events this year. However, this target was almost reached in one event only.
“We have thus revised the total target for the year to Rp120 billion. This means that we need to at least grab Rp50 billion more, which I think is achievable.”
GITF in April generated Rp70.8 billion in sales and drew 44,724 visitors.
Meijer said GITF this weekend would highlight new domestic destinations, especially in East Indonesia. “Through the travel fair we would like to introduce Garuda’s new destinations like Labuan Bajo, Ende and Bima in East Nusa Tenggara; Bau Bau and Kolaka in South-east Sulawesi; Jember and Banyuwangi in East Java; Sibolga in North Sumatra and other interesting destinations in Papua.”
Separately, Garuda Indonesia yesterday launched the first of its five weekly flights from Jakarta to London via Amsterdam. The capital city of the UK forms Garuda’s second gateway in Europe after Amsterdam.
Meijer commented: “There are strong business, educational, and cultural ties between Indonesia and the UK, and we believe this new service will further boost those activities among the two countries, while offering easier access for travellers from the UK to Indonesia, which is now one of the fastest economic growth centres in the world.”
Following the carrier’s entrance into the SkyTeam global airline alliance in March, Garuda made Amsterdam its hub for Europe and beyond.
