New Initiative For More Singapore to Sulawesi Traffic

A new initiative to attract inbound traffic from Singapore to Sulawesi is in the making with a plan to sell Manado-Makassar packages riding on a codeshare agreement between SilkAir and Garuda Indonesia. Visit Indonesia Tourism Officer (VITO) Singapore country manager, Sulaiman Shehdek, said: “SilkAir has four weekly services between Singapore and Manado (North Sulawesi), while Garuda Indonesia has a daily service between Singapore and Makassar (South Sulawesi), and a number of flights between Makassar and Manado. “As such, travellers from Singapore and other countries can pick any day of the week to visit Manado and Makassar.” “Both airlines have approached VITO Singapore to link them up with the North Sulawesi Tourism Promotion Board (NSTPB) and South Sulawesi Tourism Board to create two-city leisure traffic.” Five-day/four-night packages with two nights in Manado and two nights in Makassar are being discussed, which should be ready in time for Singapore’s mid-year school holidays. Fam trips for Singapore’s travel consultants and the media to North and South Sulawesi from March 3-7 are also being planned. “Manado has always been known as a diving destination. Now we need the destination to come up with ideas on what they can offer leisure travellers in particular, but also MICE,” said Sulaiman. NSTB executive director Widijanto said: “We will be responsible for the groundhandling and are working out the details with VITO Singapore. “The cooperation with VITO Singapore is just the beginning. We are trying to expand our market, and cooperation with VITO is the way to go. The Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy has VITOs in 11 destinations (worldwide), and we are working with them.” One example is a partnership with VITO France, said Widijanto. “We are trying to get more of the European market, and VITO France is looking for new destinations (beyond Bali) for special interest tours.”