Bromo Tourism Continues to Operate

In conjunction with the celebration of Wulan Kapitu, the tourist attraction of Mount Bromo continues to operate during the Christmas and New Year holidays. However, there will be vehicle restrictions at certain times.

KOMPAS/DEFRI WERDIONO

Thousands of local and foreign tourists mingled at Pananjakan I in the Mount Bromo area, Probolinggo, East Java, to watch the sunrise some time ago.

MALANG, KOMPAS — The tourist attraction of Mount Bromo, East Java, continues to operate during the 2022 Christmas holiday and the 2023 New Year even though at the same time the Tengger community will be celebrating the tradition of Wulan Kapitu. Vehicle restrictions to Caldera Tengger will only take place at the beginning and end of Wulan Kapitu.

Wulan Kapitu is the seventh month on the Tengger community calendar. The seventh month is considered sacred by local elders and community leaders. During Wulan Kapitu, Tengger elders perform the Ritual of Mutih Fasting to withstand the worldly nature and get closer to God.

Head of the Evaluation Data and Public Relations subdivision of the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park (BBTNBTS) Sarif Hidayat said on Friday (16/12/2022) that vehicle restrictions would be carried out from Dec. 23 at 6 p.m. to Dec. 24 at 6 p.m. and Jan. 21, 2023 at 6 p.m. to Jan. 22 at 6 p.m.

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Besides the beginning and end of Wulan Kapitu, Bromo will operate as usual. "This is the third year in which tourist visits are not closed during Wulan Kapitu. But visitors cannot use motorized vehicles to the Bromo crater. For those who still want to go to Bromo, they can use a horse, ride a bicycle or walk," said Sarif.

During the closure of the caldera, motorized vehicles are limited to only the Pakis Bincil region for tourists through Pasuruan. Tourists from Malang and Lumajang are limited to Jemplang, while tourists from Probolinggo are limited to Cemorolawan.

For those who still want to go to Bromo, they can use a horse, ride a bicycle or walk.

The closure of the caldera at the beginning and end of Wulan Kapitu is based on the letter of the Probolinggo regency chapter of Parisada Hindu Dharma Number 219/PHDI-KAB/XII/2022.

In Batu city, East Java, it is hoped that tourist visits by the end of this year will be better than the previous two years. At the end of 2020 and 2021, there were many restrictions on community activities due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so tourist visits plunged.

Chairman of the Batu city chapter of the Indonesian Hotel and Restaurant Association (PHRI) Sujud Hariadi said, until now, the level of hotel reservations in Batu for Christmas and New Year was still under 50 percent. The PHRI also hoped that reservations would surge after Dec. 20.

KOMPAS/DEFRI WERDIONO

A motorcyclist passes in front of the Jatim Park 2 tourist site in Batu, East Java, Monday (9/3/2020).

This condition is different from the period before the pandemic. Before the pandemic, up until mid-December, reservations usually reached 80 percent. At that time, the remaining 20 percent were filled after Dec. 20.

"We are optimistic that reservations will be full for Christmas and New Year this time. Maybe some tourists choose a reservation approaching D-day. These days the visit is actually good, starting from school holidays. However, for Dec. 25-31, it is still below 50 percent," Sujud said.

According to Sujud, Batu has prepared to welcome tourists. One way is by preparing tour packages, such as music performances and attractions for the new year. Two years earlier, live music and performances at the hotel were prohibited due to the pandemic.

Toll facilities

From Bandar Lampung it was reported, PT Hutama Karya (Persero) as the manager of the Trans Sumatra Toll Road has been prepared to face the flow of Christmas and New Year homecoming travel. In addition to completing road repairs on the toll road, Hutama Karya also added toll substation facilities to toilets in a number of rest areas. Director of Operations III of Hutama Karya, Koentjoro, said that his company had reviewed the condition of the Trans Sumatra toll roads from Lampung to Aceh. In general, the condition of toll roads, especially in the Lampung and South Sumatra regions, is ready to be passed by travelers.

"After we checked together, the Bakauheni-Terbanggi Besar section, the Pematang Panggang-Kayu Agung section, to the Palembang-Indralaya section, could be traversed safely by travelers," Koentjoro said.

He added that officers in the field had prepared various things to anticipate the surge of travelers during the Christmas and New Year holidays. The toll road manager has also coordinated with state-owned ferry operator PT ASDP to anticipate the buildup at the Bakauheni Port gate in Lampung during the reverse flow.

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For this reason, the toll manager has prepared additional facilities in the form of additional toll booths at the South Bakauheni tollgate, from five lanes to seven, to anticipate the buildup of vehicles near the Bakauheni Port.

In addition, the number of toll booths at the Kotabaru tollgate (GT) was added from four lanes to six lanes, because the tollgate is the main access to the city of Bandar Lampung.

Furthermore, officers will also operate a mobile reader to speed up transactions at tollgates and provide modular public fueling station facilities (SPBU) in several toll road resting places.

The locations that will be equipped with modular gas station facilities are the KM 20 B Rest Area at Bakauheni-Terbanggi Besar section and Rest Area KM 189 at Terbanggi Besar-Panggang-Kayu Agung.

KOMPAS/VINA OKTAVIA

Traffic on the Bakauheni-Terbanggi Besar toll road, Tuesday (26/1/2021).

Other facilities prepared are the mobile Mandiri Automated Teller Machines (ATM) to facilitate the transaction of toll road users and the addition of 28 portable toilets in rest areas. The health post and monitoring post will also be established in the toll road rest areas.

Koentjoro predicted that Bakauheni-Terbanggi Besar toll road users would increase to more than 19 percent than normal conditions. The increase in traffic flow on other Trans Sumatra toll roads is predicted to be around 16 percent.

Meanwhile, in the city of Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara, around 200 tonnes of food are transported by the KM Sabuk Nusantara 67 ship to a number of remote areas for the needs of the community during Christmas 2022 and New Year 2023.

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Based on the observation of Kompas, the ship operated by PT Pelni transported basic necessities from the Port of Tenau, Kupang, on Friday (16/12/2022). The ship will sail to the small islands in the southern province of Maluku.

The basic goods transported are, among others, rice, cooking oil, granulated sugar and flour. This food is needed by the community for consumption during Christmas to the New Year. The majority of people who inhabit the shipping destination areas are Christians.

Mercy Franz (55), a resident of Kisar Island, Southwest Maluku regency, Maluku, said Kupang was an option for them to shop. This is because transportation access from Kisar Island to Kupang is increasingly smooth compared with access to Ambon, the capital of Maluku Province.

"In the last three years, the pioneer ship is getting smoother. Now there are two ships. In one week there can be up to two trips. Ticket prices are also very cheap, because they are subsidized by the government," Mercy said. The travel time from Kisar to Kupang is around 48 hours.

In addition, the price of basic goods in Kupang is also cheaper than in Ambon.

This article was translated by Hyginus Hardoyo.