Kepariwisataan II - The Potential Tourisms of East Nusa Tenggara

The Potential Tourisms of East Nusa Tenggara 

East Nusa Tenggara (Indonesian: Nusa Tenggara Timur – NTT) is a province of Indonesia. It is located in the eastern part of the Lesser Sunda Islands and includes West Timor. It has a total area of 48,718.1 km², and the population at the 2010 Census was 4,683,827; the latest official estimate in January 2014 was 5,070,746. The provincial capital is Kupang on West Timor.

The province consists of more than 500 islands, the three largest being Flores, Sumba, and the western half ofTimor (West Timor). The eastern part of Timor is the independent country of East Timor. East Nusa Tenggara is the only province in Indonesia where Roman Catholicism is the predominant religion. Nusa Tenggara Timur, inIndonesian, means "eastern southeastern islands"; compare to Nusa Tenggara Barat, which means "western southeastern islands".

The provincial government aims to promote tourism. There are various interesting locations in the province. The basic infrastructure to support the tourist sector (such as transport facilities, accommodation, and adequate and reliable information) needs to be strengthened but several main features of the tourist sector in the province include:

• Komodo Island with the well-known Komodo dragon
• Kelimutu volcano on Flores which contains 3 striking crater lakes of varying colors
• Mount Mutis to the east of Kupang, the highest point in the province and an area known for hiking & bird-watching
• Semana Santa in Larantuka
• Traditional housing and pasola in Sumba Island
• Alor Dive in Alor Island
• Nemberalla Beach in Rote Ndao
• Pink Beach in Padar island
• Taman 17 in Riung Island

Various local community groups in the province work to promote the local tourist industry although, as yet, many of these activities are still somewhat underdeveloped and need strengthening.

Komodo National Park

The Komodo National Park is a national park in Indonesia located within the Lesser Sunda Islands in the border region between the provinces of East Nusa Tenggara and West Nusa Tenggara. The park includes the three larger islands Komodo, Padar and Rinca, and 26 smaller ones, with a total area of 1,733 km² (603 km² of it land). The national park was founded in 1980 to protect the Komodo dragon, the world's largest lizard. Later it was dedicated to protecting other species, including marine species. In 1991 the national park was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Komodo National Park has been selected as one of the New 7 Wonders of Nature. The waters surrounding Komodo island also contains rich marine biodiversity. Komodo islands is also a part of the Coral Triangle, which contains one of the richest marine biodiversity on earth.

How To Get There?

While most visitors enter Komodo National Park (KNP) through the gateway cities of Labuan Bajo in the west of Flores or Bima in eastern Sumbawa, the departure point for your trip is actually Denpasar, Bali. 

	By Air:
	Indonesia Air Transport (IAT) Depart : Everyday DPS - LBJ : 10.00 – 11.30 LBJ - DPS : 12.00 – 13.30 Price: Y CLASS : IDR 751.000 H CLASS : IDR 696.000 Q CLASS : IDR 641.000 (NON REFUND TICKET) Trans Nusa Airlines (TGN) Depart : Everyday DPS – LBJ : 10.00 – 11.50 & 13.00 – 14.20 LBJ – DPS VIA BMU (BIMA) : 12.05 - 12.35 BMU-DPS : 12.50 – 13.45 LBJ – DPS : 14.35 – 15.15 Price Y CLASS : IDR 761.000 L CLASS : IDR 651.000 M CLASS : IDR 541.000
	By Land:
	The gateway cities of Labuan Bajo and Bima are connected to Denpasar, Bali by overland buses.
	By Sea (ferry):
	Travel time: approximately 36 hours The gateway cities of Labuan Bajo and Bima are also connected to Denpasar, Bali by inter-island ferry. Contact the Indonesia Sea Transportation Company (PELNI) at Jalan Raya Kuta No. 299, Tuban - Bali (Tel: 0361 - 763 963) to reserve a seat on the KM. Tilong Kabila, which departs Benoa Port, Bali bound for Bima and Labuan Bajo Benoa-Bima-Labuan Bajo  Fortnightly (every two weeks) on Saturdays: 09.00-20.00 (next day). One-way ticket (as of 10/6/06) from Rp. 143,000.00 - Rp. 435,000.00 Labuan Bajo-Bima-Benoa  Fortnightly (every two weeks) on Thursdays: 08.00-11.00 (next day). One-way ticket (as of 10/6/06) from Rp. 143,000.00 - Rp. 435,000.00 Note: the ferry schedule and ticket prices may change with or without prior notice
	By Sea (live-aboard):
	Komodo National Park is serviced by a wide range of live-aboard boats, with return packages to Komodo National Park from a variety of departure points, including Bali, Lombok, Bima and Labuan Bajo Prices (as of 10/6/06) are ranging from USD 230.00 - USD 295.00 / person / night.
	From Gateway Cities to Komodo National Park (KNP)
	You can easily organize a shared boat charter by local boat from either ports at Labuan Bajo or Bima (Sape) to the two major points of access in the Park: Loh Liang (on Komodo Island) or Loh Buaya (on Rinca Island) Charter price (as of 10/6/06) - excluding meals, KNP entrance fee etc: Labuan Bajo: KNP: Rp. 750,000 - 1,500,000 per boat / day Bima (Sape): KNP: Rp. 1,500.000 - 2,000.000 per boat / day Note: the charter prices may change with or without prior notice

Kelimutu

Kelimutu (pronounced [kəliˈmutu]) is a volcano, close to the small town of Moni in central Flores island in Indonesia. The volcano is around 50 km to the east of Ende, Indonesia, the capital of Ende regency in East Nusa Tenggara province.

In the early days of developing the local national park in the Kelimutu area, there were some disputes with local communities over the use of the resources. More recently, forest rangers have worked to develop better relations with nearby village communities and overall management has improved.

Kelimutu is one of the mountains listed as a ribu in Indonesia which are mountains in Indonesia which are more than 1,000 meters high.

The area is said to have begun to attract attention after being noticed by a regional Dutch military commander, B. van Suchtelen in 1915 and became more well-known after Y. Bouman wrote about the site in 1929.

The closest airports are Maumere, and Ende. There are regular flights to Ende from Bali. The drive from Ende to Moni, the town at the base of Kelimutu where accommodation is available, takes about 3 hours, while from Moni to Kelimutu vehicle park, a 13 kilometers needs 45 minutes. Usually tourists sleep one night to catch sunrise at Kelimutu.

Get In

Airplanes from Denpasar to Maumere and Ende are limited. The ticket price is more than Rp 1 million to more than Rp 2 million for one way trip.

Buses from Bajawa (7 hr, Rp 80,000) start at 6AM. Gunung Mas runs 12-seater "Travel Bus" from Ruteng to Kelimutu (continuing to Maumere) at 7AM and 1.30~2.PM. It takes 10 hr from Ruteng to Kelimutu (6 hours from Bajawa) and they will pick up from hotels by prior arrangement.

From Ende there are more options. Public cars (2 hr, Rp 40,000), Toyota Kijang are the normally the most comfortable option. Bemos (Rp 20,000) and buses (Rp 30,000) also ply the route in 2.5 hr. If you're feeling adventurous ojeks will take you there for Rp 100,000 letting you make your way in your own pace and stop for photos along the very scenic route.

From Maumere (3-4 hr) there is the same plethora of buses (Rp 30,000) and public cars (Rp 50,000), just ask at your hotel.

From Riung, the public bus to Ende (50 000) leaves at 6am and you can catch a bus to Kelimutu from there.

Get Around

The ubiquitous ojek is never far away. Depending on your guesthouse's proximity to the national park, ojeks are between Rp 25,000-35,000 (1 way) for a ride up to see the sunrise at 4:30AM. It's best to walk back since it's a nice walk, and there's nothing worse than having an eager ojek driver pulling at you to leave the beautiful lakes just as the light is getting perfect for that moment.

You can rent a motorbike at many places around town for 100 000 for the day.

Source:

- wikipedia.org

- en.wikivoyage.org

- komodonationalpark.org

- google.com