Indonesia has been known for its resorts in Bali, but there is far more to this country than the sand and the beach. You can go in an adventure by taking a short road trip to explore Jakarta where you can see different beautiful landscapes, their culture, and experience life on the world's most populous island of Java.
You can escape the metropolis of Jakarta by heading directly to the south coast to avoid the downtown areas from the airport. Although the place is only less than 100 kilometers away, the trip can take up to four hours, given the country's traffic.
Visit the coastal town of Pelabuhan Ratu, or also known as "Harbor of the queen," to enjoy sightseeing and shop at the same time. According to the South China Morning Post, you can see hundreds of wooden fishing boats here, and a quayside market full of tropical fish, squid, shellfish, and crabs.
You can also take a side tour by going to the coastal road west and turn to a narrow side road to Sawarna beach. You can enjoy walking on a long sandy beach that runs for about 2 kilometers. The place is also popular as a surfing location because of its big waves. It is also known for its beautiful view with its wave-carved rock platform topped with two "neighboring outcrops of rock" that stand like "house-sized natural sculptures."
When you return to the road, you can see rural villages full of Dutch-inspired houses - single-story and topped with gabled roofs that extend to cover verandas. It also has brick red roof tiles that oppose the walls' bright colors like orange, red, and blue. If you are lucky, you can also witness a village hosting a wedding party.
Meanwhile, the Indonesian tourism ministry continuously provides technical guidance and workshops for 10 halal tourist destinations to boost the country's rank as halal tourism's top destination. "The goal in 2019 is to have Indonesia rank first as the most hospitable destination for Muslim tourists according to the Global Muslim Travel Index (GMTI)," Tourism Ministry Arief Yahya said at the launching of the Indonesia Muslim Travel Index (IMTI) at Balairung Soesilo Soedarman in Jakarta, per Tempo.co.
The halal tourism development acceleration team, Crescentrating.com, and HalalTrip.com, runs the technical guidance program and workshop. Aceh, Riau Islands, West Sumatra, Jakarta, West Java, Yogyakarta, East Java, Lombok, and South Sulawesi are set to receive the IMTI 2019 technical guidance. Minister Arief said they are hoping that the country's halal tourism growth would grow by 42 percent this year, from 3.5 million to 5 million, which is only 25 percent of the total tourism goal.
