Indonesia TCSS, Exchange Rate, Favourite Song/Music update

[ccchun3230]

........even hotter!!

[Nulgath]

Look like the indo exchg rate isn't so good.

[Nulgath]

New Delhi, Jan 31 (IANS) Indonesia may be attracting almost double the number of global tourists than India but visitors from here are few and the southeast Asian country has decided to grant free visas to Indians to attract more travelers from India which is a "big market" for them.

Vinsensius Jemadu, Indonesia's tourism director, was in India to promote Indonesian tourism and attract more Indians. He says Indonesia and India enjoy very good relations which will help in attracting more tourists.

Indonesia is also participating in the South Asian Tourism and Travel Expo (SATTE) 2016.

Jemadu said that more than 10 million people from across the globe visit Indonesia every year - but only 270,000 from India. Indonesia attracts the highest number of tourists from Singapore, followed by Malaysia, Australia, China, Japan, South Korea and then India.

"Realising that India is a big market, the Indonesian government decided to grant free visas to Indians. We have set a target to attract 350,000 tourists from India this year, which is a big challenge for us," he said. "Most of the people from India visit Bali. May be it is because they do not know about other places there. We want them to explore other places of the country as well," he said.

Indonesia's tourism industry contributes nine percent to the country's GDP. "Our plans are to boost tourism industry and increase it to 15 percent of the GDP by the end of 2019."

"As many as 60 percent of the total tourists visit Indonesia because of its rich cultural heritage while 35 percent come to the country to see its natural beauty. Five percent tourists come here to enjoy manmade activities," Jemadu told IANS.

Expressing concern over lack of direct connectivity between India and Indonesia, Jemadu said: "So far there is no direct flight between the two countries. People from India reach Indonesia via Singapore or Malaysia which is not good for tourism because people have to spend more time and money in travelling."

He, however, added that this issue will be sorted out soon as both the governments have agreed to start direct flight between the two nations.
"I am hopeful that the direct flight between Mumbai and Bali will start by March or April. Garuda Indonesian airline had agreed to operate flights between the two countries," he said.

[Nulgath]

Indonesia's state news agency Antara reported on Friday (29/01) that the government of Indonesia will sign a regulation next week that allows visa-free visits for 80 additional countries, including Australia. Currently, a total of 90 countries already enjoy this visa-free facility (for trips that last a maximum of 30 days). Antara quoted the words of the country's Deputy Tourism Minister for Overseas Promotion I Gde Pitana. In 2015 the government provided this facility to an additional 45 countries in an effort to boost the tourism industry and generate more foreign exchange earnings.

This means that a total of 170 countries will enjoy the visa-free visit facility (making it easier and cheaper for foreigners to access Indonesia) soon. Although the government will earn less revenue through the selling of short visit visas (currently it charges USD $35 for a visa-on-arrival), the visa-free facility is expected to boost the number of foreign tourist arrivals. And as each foreign tourist is estimated to spend up to USD $1,200 per visit, it will thus result in significantly more foreign exchange earnings.

It is remarkable that Australia has been named as one of the countries that will receive the visa-free facility as diplomatic relations between both countries have experienced some downs in recent years. Moreover, initially Indonesia requested a visa-free facility for its own citizens when traveling to Australia (reciprocity), a request ignored by Australia. Diplomatic relations between both nations have been tested by Indonesia's decision to execute two Australian citizens in early 2015 (despite Australia requesting for clemency) and the 'spying scandal' that occurred in 2013 when allegations were made that the Australia Signals Directorate attempted to monitor activity on the mobile phones of then-Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, his wife and several senior government officials.

The island of Bali - known as the most popular tourist destination in Indonesia - attracted a total of 3.6 million foreign tourists in the January-November 2015 period. Most of these tourists (876,748) originated from Australia.

Foreign Tourist Arrivals in Indonesia, 2013-2015:

Foreign Tourist Arrivals in Indonesia, 2007-2015:

¹ indicates government target
Source: Statistics Indonesia (BPS)

[Naka_Timo]

ST 12 - Aku Masih Sayang

[aalphan43]

Iva Lola - Rumangsamu Yo Penak

[aalphan43]

D'Mojang - Disitu Kadang Saya Merasa Sedih

[aalphan43]

Trio Macan - Suka Sama Kamu

[brassicbrassic]

Her song...

[brassicbrassic]

Her song...

[brassicbrassic]

Her song again...

[Naka_Timo]

Kerispatih - Mengenangmu

[nono1973]

Originally Posted by Nulgath

Look like the indo exchg rate isn't so good.

Looks like the Sin$ is getting weak this holiday season

Today only 9560/SGD

[ccchun3230]

Hot dance!

[ccchun3230]

Hot dance!