The Jakarta Post – Jakarta / Sun, September 24, 2017 / 03:05 pm
After the recent groundbreaking ceremony of a new diving center in Tanjung Lesung Pandeglang during the Tanjung Lesung Charm Festival 2017 that runs from Sept. 22 – 24 in Banten, PT Banten West Java is now dividing their focus between the diving center and the marina development in Tanjung Lesung.
“We are targeting yacht clubs, once the diving center is finished they won’t hesitate to do diving in Tanjung Lesung,” said PT Banten West Java president director, Poernomo Siswoprasetiji.
While the construction of the diving center is ongoing, Banten tourism department with the support from tourism ministry is conducting a lot of training to foster certified human resources that will be able to manage the diving activity in Tanjung Lesung.
As for the marina project, Poernomo said that that they are currently doing research together with a professional institution.
“Currently we only have a mini-marina, what we want is for Tanjung Lesung to have a marina that is able to accommodate cruise ships. The research is done and the result will come out soon,” Poernomo added.
The company has allocated 300 billion rupiahs for the project that will also include the development of facilities.
Tourism ministry’s marine tourism promotion head Florida Pardosi said that the diving center is a trigger for the further development of marine tourism in Tanjung Lesung.
“The diving center will give a significant impact for Tanjung Lesung in terms of attracting tourists, especially since Tanjung Lesung is close to Jakarta. Divers who come to Jakarta only have Thousands Islands as a choice, in the future they will have another option that is Tanjung Lesung,” said Florida.
Florida added that divers have different tourist habits than regular tourists.
“Once they are in Indonesia, they won’t make a stop at tourist destinations, they’ll go straight to the diving location. This diving center will pique their interest in exploring the underwater of Tanjung Lesung and surrounding area,” Florida added.
Florida also hoped that the tourism industry could utilize this diving center for creating new tour packages for divers.
“If the diving center only relies on current tourists, it won’t be maximized. I’m expecting tourism industry to help promote and sell diving-special packages for Tanjung Lesung and its surrounding,” Florida said. (asw)
