Revamp Indonesia’s island-hopping tours Amron Hamdi  ;  A communication and media specialist in Jakarta

JAKARTA POST, 27 Desember 2014

                                                

                                                                                                                       

This year should be my new record for island-hopping tours because I have managed to hop around at least 10 islands, swim in four different seas and enjoy beautiful beaches and stunning underwater scenery in five locations. I visited Jakarta’s Thousand Islands early this year, then the Philippines’ El Nido and Puerto Princesa in May, Banda Aceh’s beaches in June, and recently, the beautiful Ora beach in Maluku. From the five locations, El Nido is probably the most impressive place I have ever been to. The beautiful images of beaches and lagoons on El Nido I found on Google were the main reason I said a prompt yes to a friend who told me about this place and asked if I could hop along. My friend warned me that the tourism infrastructure and facilities in El Nido were not as developed as on other popular island destinations, like Indonesia’s Bali, Thailand’s Phuket or the Philippine’s Cebu. But when I landed in El Nido, I could not have cared less about the infrastructure or facilities given the endless beauty there. El Nido has a very limited selection of hotels and restaurants; its electricity only runs 12 hours a day, and there is only one — quite expensive — direct flight from Manila. But it provides safe and convenient boats, well-organized tours and freshly cooked meals. These services were all better than my experiences of island-hopping in Sumatra’s Sabang, Kalimantan’s Derawan, Sulawesi’s Donggala, Jakarta’s Thousand Islands, or even in Bali’s popular Lembongan and Lombok’s Gilis. El Nido has very similar traditional boats to those found in Bali, Lombok and Sulawesi; colorful wooden boats with balancing outriggers on both sides. But they have been customized to meet certain safety standards — notably rubber step guards or mats on every boat to prevent passengers from falling on the slippery wooden decks and well-measured ladders that fit every landing dock on every island. Yes, the term island-hopping tour does mean people are supposed to hop to get from one island to another; but safe and convenient ladders will definitely make it easier for children and the elderly, or any passenger in fact. A fellow tourist on Ora island, Maluku, sprained her ankle because she stumbled on the slippery deck when she tried to hop onto the boat as neither a ladder nor rubber steps were available. Our tour operators often disregard other safety gear — like life jackets, which are hardly ever checked or counted before every boat trip. In El Nido, wherever a tourist stays, be it in a hostel up the hill or an inn by the beach, they can very easily access information about tours from the accommodation staff. The staff at the inn and hotel are very well trained about tour information, routes, packages, times, rates and pick-up points. The boat crews were also very prompt and would share considerable trivial information about the islands. Whether or not it was true, information like “this place was named after a certain event” or “that Hollywood movie was filmed here” definitely entertained tour members. The tours were also staged in their level of excitement i.e. the scenery on the surface and/or underwater adventure; where to conclude the tour, where to best put the cocktail bar and watch the sunrise and so forth. Indonesian tour operators need to identify interesting spots, facts and stories about the places they visit and train their staff how to (interestingly) share this with guests. The meals served in El Nido and Puerto Princesa were identical to those served in Indonesia, steamed rice, grilled tuna/red snapper or chicken with vegetables and what looked like Manadonese fish dishes — but the crews grilled the fish and chicken and cooked the vegetables on the islands, making them taste better as they were all freshly done. The presentation was also no less fantastic; the crews brought along a table and colorful cloth and arranged the dishes in such a way that they were all “Instagram worthy”. And when we were ready to leave the islands, everyone was reminded to ensure no garbage was left there, making the island as clean as if there had never been a barbecue party there. With over 17,000 islands to be explored all year long, there should not be any question about Indonesia’s potential to be the top and number one destination for island-hopping tours. Any local government, especially one blessed with great landscapes, can look to the above experience to revamp one of our biggest potentials for income generation — improve comfort, services and convenience, ensure safety with well-organized tours and freshly cooked meals — and keep the islands clean. ●