A more concentrated push needs to be taken by Indonesia’s government to stimulate domestic travel demand, including focusing its marketing efforts on select few destinations and rolling out a safe travel campaign to shine light on the industry’s crusade against coronavirus.
Irfan Setiaputra, president director of national flag carrier Garuda Indonesia, said that the government should relook its plan to develop 10 new Balis, including five super-priority tourism destinations such as Toba Lake in North Sumatra and Labuan Bajo in East Nusa Tenggara.
He suggested for the government to follow in the footsteps of neighbouring countries like Thailand and Malaysia who dedicate their marketing resources to specially promoting just a couple of destinations such as Phuket and Penang in the initial Covid-19 recovery phase.
To get the tourism sector back on track, the government should evolve its marketing strategy to focus on two destinations over the next one to two years, including Bali as a top priority plus one of the 10 New Balis to be determined by considering “the interest of the people”.
“If our attention is spread out to ten destinations, we will not get many tourists (due to the lack of focus),” he said in a recent webinar initiated by Indonesia National Air Carriers Association (INACA).
To stimulate demand to the selected destinations, the government needs to play a more proactive role, said Budi Tirtawisata, CEO of Panorama Group. Examples of measures he cited include incentivising tourists and tour operators in source markets, activating travel and trade shows, diversifying attractions in tourist destinations, standardising safety protocols, and providing tax holidays for investment in the tourism sector.
He said that the government also needed to roll out more friendly regulations to air passengers to lure them to fly as well as lobby foreign airlines to reopen direct routes to those destinations.
However, Irfan stressed, health protocols should not be neglected for the sake of expediting tourism recovery, as the pandemic has brought safety to the top of travellers’ minds. Weak enforcement of health protocols along the tourism value chain could lead to a collapse of public confidence in travel and airlines, resulting in a more drawn-out recovery for the sector.
“There was a debate about the necessity to increase airline seat capacity from 50 to 70 per cent, or even 100 per cent. Garuda Indonesia did not want the government to restore full operational capacity because physical distancing has been the concern of the people and the airline industry should be the first to set an example and comply to the health protocols,” he said.
Such industry-led efforts to campaign for safe travel should be more widely publicised via a massive state-run campaign, opined Elly Hutabarat, chair of the Indonesian Travel Agent Association.
Public fear about air travel lingered due to the lack of an effective campaign, Elly said, even though airlines have equipped their aircraft with a HEPA filter, which can purify the air to reduce airborne transmission risk.
According to her observations, many people are unaware about HEPA.
She, therefore, urged the government to collaborate with INACA, airport operators, and other stakeholders to roll out a joint campaign on safe travel, which includes raising awareness about HEPA.
“Why do (businesses) hire a good PR company to make an effective campaign? Because they know how to change people’s minds,” she said.
Muhammad Awaluddin, president director of airport operator Angkasa Pura II, agreed with Elly on the necessity and importance of a publicity campaign to rebuild trust among the flying public.
The Angkasa Pura II, he said, had launched the Safe Travels Campaign on July 27. Since then, he has seen 9,289 aircraft movements and 788,000 passengers across its 19 airports from August 1-12, up 16 per cent month-on-month and 48 per cent from July, respectively. He believed that the result would be bigger if all stakeholders collaborated.
The live event is expected to welcome over 8,000 attendees, more than 400 exhibitors, over 500 buyers, and an array of over 150 top speakers. The virtual event, which will be hosted on ITB Community in Asia, is set to complement the live event by reuniting a much wider audience accompanied with digital innovations to improve audience engagement and connectivity.
Slated to launch on October 5, the course is the only one of its kind in the Philippines, as most schools’ curriculum and on-the-job training are less focused on tourism (travel agencies, tour operators), and more on hospitality (hotels, culinary, cruise ships, etc.), Clemente claimed.
Planeterra Foundation has launched its first annual Planeterra Trek Challenge and is inviting the travel industry to join a virtual trek to Everest Base Camp to help rebuild community tourism ravaged by the coronavirus.
This year’s trek spotlights the work of Planeterra’s partners in South Asia, including Nepal, with the challenge being for participants to walk the 65km, or 85,000 steps, it takes to climb to Everest Base Camp. The challenge takes place from September 21-27, with participants ‘reaching the top’ on World Tourism Day, September 27.
Planeterra’s founder, Bruce Poon Tip, has already built his own team, and pledged to match donations from participating teams, and donors, up to CAD$25,000 (US$19,085).
Bruce is inviting agency partners, suppliers, and the wider tourism industry to join the foundation in raising awareness and much-needed funds.
“The Planeterra Trek Challenge is an opportunity for us to come together virtually and create a sense of connection at a time where people are feeling distanced, not just from travel, but from other countries and cultures,” he said. “Most of us are missing travelling and many are looking for a way to give back to the people and communities who have given us life-changing travel experiences in the past.”
Bruce added: “We also want to spotlight this iconic region for travel that is currently void of tourists. These communities need our help, so let’s get away from our home offices for a bit, maybe tackle a personal fitness challenge at the same time, and do what we can to make a difference.”
Funds raised through Planeterra’s initiative will go towards helping its network of 85 community projects around the world rebuild, after the pandemic-induced travel standstill left them without any source of income.
“We are preparing a series of unique content and stories online that will celebrate and highlight community tourism. This includes interviews with travellers who have summited Everest, interviews with community tourism leaders and cooking demonstrations. Anyone who loves travel is going to want to get involved,” added Alanna Wallace, Planeterra’s program and communications manager.
The Planeterra Trek Challenge will be supported across Planeterra’s social media channels and agents can learn more about the campaign and how to sell trips to Everest Base Camp via the Agents of Change Facebook group.
Throughout September, Planeterra will be posting videos, blogs, webinars with special guests, and other information about their work in the region, as well as tips for trekking in Nepal and the unique and inspiring aspects about travel in South Asia.
Donations collected will provide kickstarter funding for communities around the world that need to invest in new health and safety measures, contribute to training for safe reopening, and help to ensure communities remain resilient and safe for years to come.
Register your team to join the Planeterra Trek challenge here.