Marine Tourism in Indonesia

In a country of thousands of islands the prosperity and development that could be gained from marine tourism is boundless. Ecotourism has steadily been growing and it is up to the government to establish developments made to attract tourists but have a negative impact on the environment.

It is said that the future of tourism in Indonesia revolves around the promotion of coastal areas and the involvement of local communities in environmental conservation efforts. With this in mind, the Indonesian government should be able to control any development in sensitive areas of the archipelago and where is deemed necessary, place a quota on the daily number of tourists allowed to visit these areas.

Recent figures show that only 10 percent of foreign and domestic tourists visit coastal areas in Indonesia. It is imperative to develop Indonesia’s marine tourism in an eco-friendly way by having a good-based regional design plan and its priority should be environmental conservation in all coastal areas. One thing is should not be designed or developed for is mass tourism that we now see in land-based tourism such as on the island of Bali.

The benefits that could be had for the people living in these coastal areas is in fact endless. The promotion of marine tourism in Indonesia within certain parameters will be beneficial to all, tourists and locals alike.