Kupang (AntaraNews NTT) - With the presence of the new Tuamese nature tourism area on Timor Island, the natural beauty of Indonesia comprising thousands of islands attached like emeralds glittering on the equatorial line will never be completely explored.
What tourists need to explore soon are the scenic Tuamese hills in the North Central Timor (TTU) District in the island of Timor, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) Province.
Tuamese is worth a visit, but its hidden wonders and beauty are yet to be widely known and explored by several local and foreign tourists.
Only a few young people in Kefamenanu and Atambua have already explored this place and admitted that from the top of the hill to the white sandy beaches beneath, everything seems enthralling.
No wonder, the NTT Association of Indonesian Tour and Travel Agencies (ASITA) is planning to develop the Tuamese nature tourism destination.
Although the Tuamese tour package has yet to be sold to tourists, NTT ASITA Chairman Abed Frans has stated that the area is still being explored through a survey of the location to find out the profile and then develop it to make it more interesting.
Baca juga: Asita explores development of Tuamese tourism
In addition, the people around the destination are friendly to tourists and provide parking spaces to visitors. The access road to the Tuamese tourist destination has also been repaired through hardening.
According to Frans, the Tuamese nature tourism in TTU District can then be coupled with various other tourist destinations in Belu District, considering the proximity between the two districts and both being located at the border with Timor Leste.
Apart from the Tuamese nature tourism, NTT Province offers a variety of interesting tourist destinations but unfortunately access to these locations is inadequate, for which the local government needs to put in hard work.
Striving to make the tourism industry an economic pillar for the province and its more than five million people, the local government must soon open access to the various tourist destinations in the province.
Several iconic tourist attractions in NTT have been included in the 2018 "Anugerah Pesona Indonesia" (API) nomination, and it must be responded to and supported positively by the local government by opening access to the locations and preparing professional human resources that are able to serve tourists visiting the places.
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Anugerah Pesona Indonesia 2018 offers a free promotional opportunity to highlight the tourism wealth of NTT to the local and international communities, so it needs to be fully supported by all government, private, and public entities.
Seven tourism icons of NTT Province that have been included in the 2018 API nomination: Kelaba Maja rock cliff, the most popular traditional food of "bose" corn, trekking on Komodo Island in West Manggarai District, 1001 Sandalwood horse parade on Sumba Island, Praijing Adat or traditional Village, Caci traditional dance, and Mount Mutis in North Central Timor District as the most popular highlands.
Trekking on Komodo Island in West Manggarai District and the 1001 Sandalwood horse parade on Sumba Island have been well-known worldwide, but the rest are little known, so efforts must be made to popularize them.
The Kelabba Maja rock cliff, located in Sabu Raijua District in Sabu Island, offers beautiful natural scenery and scenic beaches that can be visited. To reach Kelebba Maja, tourists can find a tour guide, who can show them this scenic place.
Kelebba Maja is a naturally formed rock cliff that has beautiful colors, so domestic and foreign travelers often choose this place to travel.
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Kelabba Maja is considered as the land of gods by the local residents, especially those of Gelanalalu Village, who believe that the colorful rock hill is home to the indwelling god of Maja.
Currently, direct flights from the East Java provincial city of Surabaya and from Lombok in West Nusa Tenggara to Kupang, center of the NTT provincial administration, are expected to bring more local and foreign tourists to the island province.
However, flights from Surabaya to Labuan Bajo and Kupang, during this time, still have to make a stopover in Denpasar, so NTT Tourism Office Chief Marius Ardu Jelamu has expressed hope that direct flights would be started.
Flight services are also expected to be started from other leading tourist areas, such as Lake Toba, Yogyakarta, and Mandalika, directly to NTT.
In addition, other airlines are expected to serve international flights to the province, as the two international airports of Komodo in Labuan Bajo and El Tari in Kupang are now ready.
At present, the Lion Group, a low-cost airline company, has been supporting NTT's tourism sector by starting several new flight routes to the province's top tourist destinations.
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