Chairman of Indonesian Tour Guide Association and President of South-East Asian Tour Guide Association I Nyoman Kandia believes that the mushrooming illegal villas in a number of regencies in Bali has brought negative impact into harmonious environmental management as well as the tourism development in Bali. Therefore he expected related public officials to intensify law enforcement against illegal Bali villas to protect image of Bali tourism and to promote people-based tourism.
Illegal Bali villas have also swept aside tourism management concept based on home stay which brings direct bebefits for people. People-based tourism concept is getting farther away as the government of regencies and cities seem to let those illegal villas transform themselves into tourist accommodation. The situation appearsed at its worst in one of tourism barometers in Bali, Badung and Gianyar.
He believes that the tourist accommodation management has shifted away from people’s houses. Mushrooming villas everywhere have swept local Balinese aside in competition to get a income from tourism. To improve the situation he suggested to immediately conduct mapping of tourism supporting zones by exposing surrounding villages.
Kandia reminded Bali not to get trapped in dreams of collecting investment. Clear bargaining against investors was needed fot environmental protection. Kandia who also sit in the executive committee of World Tour Guide Federation thought that there are a lot of things which needed reconsideration to keep Bali as the nation’s tourism barometer. In the future, Bali has to strictrly protect its environment as its main strength.
Environment-based tourism should not be translated into constructing tourism macilities on the cliff top, water preservation areas, lakes, or liver stream buffers. Eco tourism means tourism development which sustains natural functions to promote harmonious relationship between tourism development and the nature.
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