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The Earthquake and Tsunami in Sumatra, Indonesia, did not affect the islands of Bali and Lombok at all. All of our guests and staff on the islands of Lombok and Bali are safe. Our prayers and thoughts go out to the thousand’s of people affected by this tragedy.

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Our prayers and thoughts go out to the thousand’s of people affected by the Earthquake & Tsunami

in Aceh, North Sumatra, Thailand, Srilanka and India.

Rest in Peace:

Fathers, Mothers,

Brothers and Sisters...

Our tears is not enough to express our deep sadness...!

AUSTRALIAN TRAVEL AGENTS VISIT LOMBOK!

Lombok received a big vote of approval from a group of Australian travel industry representatives who visited the resort island recently

The group comprised agents from leading Australian travel agencies such as Jetset Travel, Harvey World Travel, Travel World and Flight Centre; as well as representatives from Garuda Orient Holidays and Merpati Airlines. Hosted by the Senggigi Beach Hotel during their three-day stay, the delegates toured many of Lombok’s top hotels, including the Sheraton and Oberoi Resorts; as well as exploring Senggigi and the popular island of Gili Trawangan.

The final day of their stay culminated in a meeting hosted at the Jayakarta Hotel and attended by local hotel and industry representatives, along with Pak Yaqoub and Pak Tjokorda, both from the Department of Culture and Tourism.

The group’s overall opinion of Lombok is an attractive and desirable holiday destination, with a lot of tourism potential for the Australian market. The meeting gave Lombok’s leading tourism industry figures a chance to gauge the Australian’s responses, as well as to learn how best to serv this market. Ms Vitale of Garuda Orient Holidays summarised the opinions of the group with this statement: “Lombok is an ideal destination for Australians looking for beautiful beaches and a more relaxed holiday environment than Bali. It would be easy to sell Lombok to our clients, either as the perfect partner to their Bali holiday, or as a stand-alone destination. From what we have seen over the past few days, we don’t need any more convincing about the possibilities Lombok has to offer. There is no doubt that Lombok is a great destination! However, there are a number of things Lombok must do to enable us to market the island to Australians.”

The key points raised to the Travel Agents at the meeting can be summarised as follows:

Lombok urgently needs reliable connecting flights to and from Bali. These flights ideally should connect with arriving and departing Australian flights.
It is essential that Australian agents can package domestic flights, as part of the complete holiday package purchased in Australia. Australians generally want to buy a complete package, with itinerary and flights confirmed prior to leaving home.
Flight departures and arrivals need to be operated professionally, to avoid client complaints about delays, cancellations and missed connections.
At present, the only connecting flights available for packaging are with Merpati Airlines.
There is a large demand for boat transfers between Bali and Lombok, as some people will not use small aircraft. Guests also see the boat journey as an attractive part of the holiday experience.
Lombok is largely unknown to Australians and has little representation in Australia. Agents urgently need printed materials to promote Lombok, as well as printed information about the island’s attractions, facilities and accommodations.
Lombok is not currently represented at any of the Australian Travel’s Expo’s or Road Shows; therefore the island is not seen as accessible by either the travel industry or the public. Representatives from Lombok need to attend these events to create a presence, answer potential clients’ queries, and market the destination to industry personnel.

All representatives at the meeting were in agreement about the above points raised and expressed concern about the lack of information available about Lombok; and the perceived lack of initiative on the part of the Lombok travel industry in realizing the island’s potential by not attending the established industry marketing events offered in Australia. They unanimously felt that it would be much harder to market Lombok if the island continues to ignore the industry events.

Many at the meeting raised the issue of safety, and it was felt that a representative from Lombok would be better able to address these concerns by visiting Australia and speaking directly to both industry and public. It was also suggested that Garuda Indonesia and Merpati Airlines need to work together in presenting a packaged airfare to encourage travel to Lombok.

Although Lombok is popular with European travelers, few Australians are aware of the attractions that lie just off the shores of their favourite destination: Bali. More than 223,000 Australians have visited Bali so far this year; so Australia would seem to be an important market for Lombok too. Lombok’s tourism industry would be wise to pursue the opportunities presented by this most recent visit.

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