Sumba Tourism Still Lacks Infrastructure

KOMPAS/TOTOK WIJAYANTO

A weaver demonstrates her skills at the Sumba Textiles Expo.

Tourism in Sumba, East Nusa Tenggara, continues to improve amid limited accommodation and supporting infrastructure.

WAINGAPU, KOMPAS — Sumba Island in East Nusa Tenggara is designed to be a special interest tourist area. However, access to Sumba is still limited, as are accommodation and connecting infrastructure to the tourist sites. It needs accelerated development and widened access to boost tourism on the island.

Sumba has iconic natural tourism potential, including savannas or grassland and rich fauna, such as sandalwood horses, orange crested cockatoos, and julang birds. There is also cultural wealth, such as ikat weaving. Unfortunately, the supporting facilities for the tourism potential are still minimal.

Access to Sumba, for example, remains limited. Direct flights from Bali to Waingapu in East Sumba are only served by three aircraft. The others must transit in Kupang. During holidays, such as July, tickets to Waingapu or Waikabubak are difficult to buy.

Connectivity by sea is even worse. State shipping company Pelni boats, which dock in Waingapu, only serve sea routes to cities in East Nusa Tenggara, such as Kupang, Ende and Labuan Bajo. There are no tourist boats that connect Waingapu with other tourist cities.

East Sumba Regent Gidion Mbilijora said after opening the Sumba Ikat Weaving Expo, at the Waingapu Heroes Field on Thursday (11/7/2019), that access to Sumba, including East Sumba, was really limited. Frequently during long holidays, flight tickets are sold out, as are hotels and lodging places. There are only three three-star hotels in the regency. The others are homestays and low-cost lodging.

"At an event like this, many people can’t get airplane tickets. Hotels are forced to refuse guests because they are full," he said.

To support the construction of access to Sumba, East Sumba regency government has prepared a 50-hectare land plot for a new airport. The airport is designed to be able to accommodate large-bodied aircraft. The existing airport can only accommodate small aircraft.

Gidion asked the central government to help increase flights to and from Waingapu and build infrastructure to support the tourist sector. "We have budgeted Rp 4.4 billion this year for tourism. The fund is for promotion and training. That is also inadequate because it should be Rp10 billion," he said.

Meanwhile, a number of investors have begun to enter East Sumba to build resorts and hotels. It is likely that in a few years, East Sumba will have more lodging rooms.

An expert staffer to the tourism and culture minister, Esthy Reko Astuti, said connectivity and accommodation will be built along with the development of East Nusa Tenggara as a new potential tourist destination. East Nusa Tenggara, especially Sumba, is designed to be a special interest tourist destination because of its natural wealth. "This special interest tourist spot cannot be visited en masse the environmental and human aspects must be considered. However, some can still be developed as general tourist sites," Esthy said.

To help promote tourism in Sumba, the Tourism and Culture Ministry is focusing on promoting Sumba with various festivals, including the Sumba Ikat Weaving Expo and the Sandalwood Horse Festival on the Puru Kambera savanna. The Sumba Ikat Weaving Expo was opened on Thursday at the East Sumba Heroes Field, followed by 200 weavers. Sandalwood horse festival starts on Friday in Puru Kambera. ( NIT/APO/ LUK)