Tomohon Poised For 7th International Flower Festival

JAKARTA, May 23 (Antara) - The small, scenic flower city of Tomohon in Indonesia's North Sulawesi Province is currently gearing up for the 7th Tomohon International Flower Festival (TIFF) to promote the tourism potential of the city. Located some 25 kilometers from the provincial city of Manado, Tomohon, with a population of over 100 thousand, has the opportunity to receive several local and foreign tourists who can enjoy the beautiful city on the highlands with fresh air. Since the Dutch Colonial era, planting flowers has been popular among the locals in Tomohon to increase the aesthetic appeal of the gardens. As a result, the city is poised to host the 7th TIFF in August 2017 to promote "The Seven Wonders of Tomohon." "The international flower festival this time will confirm that Tomohon has the natural beauty of seven mountains, seven lakes, and seven waterfalls," Jimmy F. Eman, the mayor of Tomohon, stated in Jakarta on Monday. The mountains of Lokon, Empung, Tatawiran, Mahawu, Tampusu, Masarang, and Kasuratan; the lakes of Linow, Tampusu, Pangolombian, Sineleyan, Panunuzaen, Linow Oki, and Kasewean; and Rinokrok Tumimperas, Regesan, Ranowawa, TekaanTelu, Kanderawatu, and Kinapesutan waterfalls in Tomohon continue to attract tourists. Eman noted that Tomohon City, with its uniqueness of nature and flowers, is a hidden paradise with varied wonders that present stunning natural beauty. "The TIFF 2017 will serve as a window to introduce Indonesia, North Sulawesi, and Tomohon City as tourist destinations, with their own uniqueness, at the global tourism stage," the mayor of Tomohon remarked. Four main activities prepared to enliven the festival are the Tournament of Flowers on Aug 8; Nusantara Queen of Flower Contest on Aug 7-10; Nusantara Art and Cultural Performances on Aug 8-12; and Tourism, Trade, Investment, and Floriculture Expo on Aug 7-12, 2017. The mayor of Tomohon noted that the much-awaited TIFF 2017 will greatly contribute to supporting the tourism sector and the economy in Tomohon City. "The impact of the flower festival this year would not only be felt by the tourism sector and the economy of the city of Tomohon but also by North Sulawesi, in general, as so many workers will be engaged in decorating the floats for the Tournament of Flowers," Eman stated. In addition, the flower festival will positively contribute to developing national tourism, improving public welfare, and boosting the image of the nation as a tourism destination. Hence, the Ministry of Tourism has highly lauded the Tomohon city government for organizing such an international flower festival in the city. Known as the city of flowers, Tomohon will again host the annual flower festival this year in its efforts to attract as many domestic and foreign tourists as possible. The international flower festival, being held in Tomohon since 2008, has been included in the country's annual tourism event calendar. As one of the creative promotional activities of Tomohon City, the annual international flower festival has vast appeal to attract as many foreign and local tourists as possible to the city. The annual flower festival this year can be utilized by the local government to cooperate with tourism stakeholders to promote and prepare for the arrivals of foreign and domestic tourists in Tomohon in August. The promotion of tourist destinations in the region through the TIFF 2017 aims to support the government's program to introduce "Pesona Indonesia" in increasing the number of local and foreign tourist arrivals in North Sulawesi. The international flower festival in Tomohon this year can motivate the community to showcase their creativity, and flower artisans, to enhance the quality of their products. All stakeholders in North Sulawesi are also expected to establish sound coordination by creating a safe and comfortable atmosphere for the festival's participants and tourists who will come to witness the event. In a bid to make the TIFF 2017 livelier, the Tomohon city administration has invited the members of the Council of Asian Flower Exhibition (CAFE) to participate in the event. Representing the Indonesian government, Tomohon city officials -- Harold Lolowang and Agustinus Senduk -- had attended the establishment of CAFE at Goyang City in South Korea on May 3-6, 2017. Lolowang remarked that the meeting of CAFE members in Goyang City was attended by the representatives from South Korea, Bhutan, Nepal, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Kazakhstan. All these countries in Asia host floral exhibitions, and hence, Lolowang said he had invited them to participate and enliven the TIFF in August this year. "Tomohon represents Indonesia at the CAFE, as it is the only city in the country that the central government has chosen to implement a fixed agenda of holding an annual flower festival," Lolowang added. Hence, preparations have begun for the international event, which will be attended by guests from numerous countries, as well as provincial and district governments. Several countries, including the US, France, the Philippines, New Zealand, India, and Malaysia, had participated in a similar event last year. This year's international flower festival is expected to make Tomohon City the second Pasadena, and its floral beauty is hoped to attract tourists.