Rural Tourism Must Be Promoted Sustainably

Yogyakarta, Aug 22 (Antara) - Efforts to promote rural tourism, particularly for villages in Yogyakarta that remain unknown to tourists, must be rolled out in a sustainable manner, according to an official. "The sustainable promotion of rural tourism is intended to increase the number of tourist visits to the villages in Yogyakarta," Widya Budaya Foundation Chairperson Widi Utaminingsih said here on Thursday. She called on all managers of rural tourism initiatives to intensify their promotions at home and abroad in order to attract more tourists to visit their villages. According to her, the promotion could be advertised through mass media or by joining exhibition tours and addressing the tourism market at home and abroad. "Although Yogyakarta has long been known as a major tourist destination in Indonesia, the promotion of rural tourism should continue to be intensified during any tourism activity to attract even more tourists," she remarked. Managed by Widi, the Widya Budaya Foundation deals with the study of the development of tourism and culture on the basis of local potential. Therefore, she noted that the promotion of rural tourism should be intensified, not only by the Yogyakarta provincial culture and tourism department but also by all tourism stakeholders in the province. "All stakeholders and the local community must continue to participate in the promotion of rural tourism in a sustainable manner," she said. Further, she pointed out that Yogyakarta has a variety of potential attractions for rural tourism because every village has its own special features that lure domestic and foreign tourists.