The ever crowded street of Malioboro, the fortress-cum-museum of Vredeburg and the mythical giant trees at the center of South Alun-Alun are some of Yogyakarta's best known magnets. But beyond it all, about 65 kilometers southeast of the city, lay vast beautiful beaches unbeknown to most people.
Located in Gunungkidul regency, the eight beaches are just a fraction of the 70 kilometers of coastline on the southern part of the area.
"Basically, Gunungkidul makes up almost 50 percent of the entire special territory of Yogyakarta. And the southern coastline, starting from the border of Parang Tritis Beach in the district of Bantul to Wonogiri regency, has 46 different beaches that serve different purposes," said Lutfi Nugroho from the Gunungkidul Cultural and Tourism Board to The Jakarta Post.
The eight beaches, namely Baron, Kukup, Sepanjang, Drini, Krakal, Slili, Ngandong and Sundak, are the gems among the area's 46 beaches, in addition to tourist beaches like Ngobaran, Ngrenehan, Siung, Sadeng, Wediombo and a handful of others.
"In a way, the eight beaches are inseparable because one pays for just one ticket to visit them all. But Baron and Kukup remain two of the favorites," said Nugroho.
In addition to their vastness, Baron and Kukup are the nearest two to the area's entry point, where the board recorded at least 67,000 visits throughout January 2010 alone.
It was due to this also that more locals are flocking to Baron and Kukup to provide various amenities for tourists, ranging from stalls selling traditional snacks and beverages, batik clothes to little fish from the sea. Children of the surrounding areas are often found helping fishermen drag their boats onto the shore in return for some fish on Baron Beach, an after school activity they call sopil.
"Because we don't differentiate domestic and international tourists in terms of ticket price, which is Rp 2,000 per person, data on international tourists coming to the site is unavailable, with the latest record being one we took in 1998, reaching a mere 90 to 100 international tourists per month," said Nugroho.
Like Yogyakarta, the regency has enjoyed more international visits over the past two years. Zulkarnain from Kampoeng Baron Restaurant, who also has an art gallery and rents out two small cottages in the restaurant's vicinity, told the Post they had "rejected several requests from international tourists to stay this month".
"Another four from Australia visited us last week. We had to recommend another place in Kukup because the two cottages were already occupied by an Australian and a French tourist," he said.
But despite the mounting number in January, helped by the New Year's atmosphere throughout, the following months merely recorded one sixth of the number.
"About 15,000 people entered the site in February, while up to the third week of March recorded at least 9,000 visits," said Nugroho.
He said that January and August always recorded the highest number of tourists, in addition to specific times for special ceremonies like the annual Sedekah Laut (Sea Offering Ceremony) at Baron and Kukup (this year's Sedekah Laut will fall on Dec. 7), the occasional Jathilan or Traditional Horse Dance and other local oriented shows like dangdut music concerts.
"Visitor numbers drop particularly during the fasting month. But numbers rise again within the days of Ramadan. It has also become a policy that ticket prices double during beach events," he said. Although double the normal price, any sensible person would understand that Rp 4,000 is cheap, the same amount paid to park a car for two hours in a shopping center in Jakarta.
Those who enjoy eating seafood or buying freshly caught fish from the ocean at reasonable prices often find fishermen beaches like Sadeng at Pocung village in Girisubo sub-district, Drini and Ngrenehan in Karang Asem village perfect destinations. Yet, those who enjoy unspoiled and virtually untouched beaches will definitely fall under the spell of the endless beauty of Sepanjang Beach east of Kukup. Reachable via a kilometer's walk on a rugged, rocky pathway, the beach is dedicated solely to quenching the thirst of die-hard adventurers.
The trademark yellow sand, shady trees and solitude of the beach is the safe haven of turtles, a natural conservation spot that luckily has not been exposed that much. Besides Sepanjang, Ngobaran near Ngrenehan is also known for its clean, natural beach.
"Unfortunately, we continue to receive only a small allocation of funds from the regional government each year," said Nugroho. In a typically modest Javanese way, he elaborated that the tourist industry might not be the regional government's main concern yet, with Gunungkidul still in a developing stage. Farming, traditional products and the providing of more jobs for its citizens might still be the regional government's main concerns while other matters will have to wait.
"We receive roughly 40 percent of our annual fund proposal for tourism promotions, which is a tight budget if we aim high. We usually have enough to introduce Gunungkidul to annual tourism events in Bali and Gebyar Wisata National *GWN* in Jakarta, but due to the tight budget, we stopped following such events in 2008," said Nugroho.
He said that around 31 businessmen from Malaysian business and trade associations visited these beaches several days before the interview, where Nugroho accompanied them until the end of their trip. "Some of them voiced an interest in further developing these areas, opening cottages and investing in the industry. But, we have had no further news from them yet."
In the mind of idealists, it is about time the government paid more attention to the growth of tourism in the nation. After all, neighboring countries like Malaysia, Thailand and even Singapore have long harvested a fortune from international visitors.
But common people living in heavenly rural spots like Gunungkidul, where natural resources are relied upon to make ends meet, don't really have the luxury of time. It is a bitter reality that whatever help they can get, even from Malaysia, a rival in the industry, is worthy to support the continuity of their life, one day at a time. (Er Audy Zandri)
Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com
Located in Gunungkidul regency, the eight beaches are just a fraction of the 70 kilometers of coastline on the southern part of the area.
"Basically, Gunungkidul makes up almost 50 percent of the entire special territory of Yogyakarta. And the southern coastline, starting from the border of Parang Tritis Beach in the district of Bantul to Wonogiri regency, has 46 different beaches that serve different purposes," said Lutfi Nugroho from the Gunungkidul Cultural and Tourism Board to The Jakarta Post.
The eight beaches, namely Baron, Kukup, Sepanjang, Drini, Krakal, Slili, Ngandong and Sundak, are the gems among the area's 46 beaches, in addition to tourist beaches like Ngobaran, Ngrenehan, Siung, Sadeng, Wediombo and a handful of others.
"In a way, the eight beaches are inseparable because one pays for just one ticket to visit them all. But Baron and Kukup remain two of the favorites," said Nugroho.
In addition to their vastness, Baron and Kukup are the nearest two to the area's entry point, where the board recorded at least 67,000 visits throughout January 2010 alone.
It was due to this also that more locals are flocking to Baron and Kukup to provide various amenities for tourists, ranging from stalls selling traditional snacks and beverages, batik clothes to little fish from the sea. Children of the surrounding areas are often found helping fishermen drag their boats onto the shore in return for some fish on Baron Beach, an after school activity they call sopil.
"Because we don't differentiate domestic and international tourists in terms of ticket price, which is Rp 2,000 per person, data on international tourists coming to the site is unavailable, with the latest record being one we took in 1998, reaching a mere 90 to 100 international tourists per month," said Nugroho.
Like Yogyakarta, the regency has enjoyed more international visits over the past two years. Zulkarnain from Kampoeng Baron Restaurant, who also has an art gallery and rents out two small cottages in the restaurant's vicinity, told the Post they had "rejected several requests from international tourists to stay this month".
"Another four from Australia visited us last week. We had to recommend another place in Kukup because the two cottages were already occupied by an Australian and a French tourist," he said.
But despite the mounting number in January, helped by the New Year's atmosphere throughout, the following months merely recorded one sixth of the number.
"About 15,000 people entered the site in February, while up to the third week of March recorded at least 9,000 visits," said Nugroho.
He said that January and August always recorded the highest number of tourists, in addition to specific times for special ceremonies like the annual Sedekah Laut (Sea Offering Ceremony) at Baron and Kukup (this year's Sedekah Laut will fall on Dec. 7), the occasional Jathilan or Traditional Horse Dance and other local oriented shows like dangdut music concerts.
"Visitor numbers drop particularly during the fasting month. But numbers rise again within the days of Ramadan. It has also become a policy that ticket prices double during beach events," he said. Although double the normal price, any sensible person would understand that Rp 4,000 is cheap, the same amount paid to park a car for two hours in a shopping center in Jakarta.
Those who enjoy eating seafood or buying freshly caught fish from the ocean at reasonable prices often find fishermen beaches like Sadeng at Pocung village in Girisubo sub-district, Drini and Ngrenehan in Karang Asem village perfect destinations. Yet, those who enjoy unspoiled and virtually untouched beaches will definitely fall under the spell of the endless beauty of Sepanjang Beach east of Kukup. Reachable via a kilometer's walk on a rugged, rocky pathway, the beach is dedicated solely to quenching the thirst of die-hard adventurers.
The trademark yellow sand, shady trees and solitude of the beach is the safe haven of turtles, a natural conservation spot that luckily has not been exposed that much. Besides Sepanjang, Ngobaran near Ngrenehan is also known for its clean, natural beach.
"Unfortunately, we continue to receive only a small allocation of funds from the regional government each year," said Nugroho. In a typically modest Javanese way, he elaborated that the tourist industry might not be the regional government's main concern yet, with Gunungkidul still in a developing stage. Farming, traditional products and the providing of more jobs for its citizens might still be the regional government's main concerns while other matters will have to wait.
"We receive roughly 40 percent of our annual fund proposal for tourism promotions, which is a tight budget if we aim high. We usually have enough to introduce Gunungkidul to annual tourism events in Bali and Gebyar Wisata National *GWN* in Jakarta, but due to the tight budget, we stopped following such events in 2008," said Nugroho.
He said that around 31 businessmen from Malaysian business and trade associations visited these beaches several days before the interview, where Nugroho accompanied them until the end of their trip. "Some of them voiced an interest in further developing these areas, opening cottages and investing in the industry. But, we have had no further news from them yet."
In the mind of idealists, it is about time the government paid more attention to the growth of tourism in the nation. After all, neighboring countries like Malaysia, Thailand and even Singapore have long harvested a fortune from international visitors.
But common people living in heavenly rural spots like Gunungkidul, where natural resources are relied upon to make ends meet, don't really have the luxury of time. It is a bitter reality that whatever help they can get, even from Malaysia, a rival in the industry, is worthy to support the continuity of their life, one day at a time. (Er Audy Zandri)
Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com
