Complaints by Canadian Tourists about Sulawesi's Togean Islands: Like Hell
Togean Islands, Central Sulawesi. (Istockphoto/witte-art_de)
The Togean Islands, Tojo Una-Una Regency, Central Sulawesi, is touted as one of the paradises with amazing hidden natural beauty. This location is pure waters with a variety of marine life which has long been a magnet for tourists who love marine tourism.
Unfortunately, a Canadian tourist named Dave Smith recently had an unpleasant experience.
When he decided to go to the Togean Islands, Dave imagined the experience of swimming with jellyfish. Togean waters are a breeding ground for marine animals, such as stingless jellyfish, dugongs, dolphins, and the hawksbill turtle, which is almost extinct.
In his story published by South China Morning Post on Monday (21/08), Dave took a long journey to get to Togean. He flew from Bali to Makassar, then followed by a second flight to Ampana, a small port city on the South Coast of Tomini Bay, Central Sulawesi.
He is staying overnight in Ampana, to leave by ferry the next morning to Wakai, the largest village of the Togean Islands. During the trip, he chatted with friendly locals who offered him coffee. He also found the attraction of dolphins jumping to the surface halfway through.
Dave landed in Wakai, an area he said was surrounded by dirty water and mud, where saltwater crocodiles often appeared at night. When Dave arrived, he heard that a fisherman had just died from being eaten by a crocodile the day before.
Dave then went to the resort he had booked, by renting a motorboat for IDR 150,000. According to him, there are about 20 resorts spread across the Togean Islands. During the 30-minute journey, he was treated to dramatic views of the largest island promontory and limestone karsts, which he said towered like giant chess pieces.
Established as the Togean Islands National Park in 2004, these islands are the largest in Indonesia. Launching from Mongabay, this national park is the heart of the world's coral triangle with an area of 365,241 hectares, and is also home to 262 types of coral reefs.
Arriving at the resort, Dave saw that the condition of the dining room and diving equipment room looked not good enough. But according to him, the room is quite clean with a fairly comfortable bed. Dave also regretted that the resort's presentation was not good enough.
Dave met and chatted with the other guests, Ned and Tom from Australia. They respond to how the service at the resort is. Even though they are comparing with resorts in other tourist attractions which according to them have better service. Tom had emphasized to Dave about services that match the price. "We are used to this kind of accommodation. You shouldn't be too tense when traveling on a budget in Indonesia," explained Tom.
Dave also compares that the price of his resort is only half the price of his laundry when he was vacationing at a luxury resort in the Maldives.
Canadian Tourists Call Togean Islands Looks like Heaven, Feels like Hell
Napoleon fish. (iStockphoto/hypergurl)
The next morning, Dave took one of the small boats at the resort to paddle around the island. One of the resort staff warned him not to go to the east of the island due to the presence of crocodiles in the mangroves.
However, Dave was concerned that alligators around there could swim several miles in any direction. According to him, rowing around it could threaten him.
He admitted that he read the same complaint from other tourists who stayed at different resorts in the Togean Islands on the Tripadvisor website which said residents fed wild crocodiles just 100 meters behind a reef near the house. Noticing the area around the island, Dave glanced at the coral reef area where many other visitors snorkeled. According to him, the area looks safe enough to dive in.
Under the sea, he saw vast gardens of coral, most of which were colorless or dead.
According to Travelfish, since the 1990s many fishermen have practiced fishing with bombs or cyanide in the Togean area, which has caused a sharp decline in fish numbers and massive damage to coral reefs.
This causes sharks, big fish, and turtles to be rarely seen. In 2016, data from the Tourism and Culture Office of the Tojo Una-Una Regency revealed that as many as 25 out of 90 diving spots were in poor condition.
The South Sulawesi Community Innovation Association (Immunity) noted on its website on Tuesday (11/07) that since 1990, the Togean Islands have been a supplier of Live Napoleon Fish in global trade. This changes the ecology and social structure of the community, especially the Bajau tribe.
Immunity also describes the condition of damage to coral reefs which has increased sharply in the current period. Head of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Office Tojo Una-Una, Rahmat Basri, confirmed that the illegal practice of sea bombing continues today.
After the dive, Dave surfaced and immediately decided to move to another resort, even if it was a bit more expensive. There, he felt he got a better meal, even though he couldn't sleep because the electricity and fans were turned off at night.
The next morning, Dave decided to stop his vacation and booked a boat with several other tourists to quickly take him back to Wakai. The boat arrived in the afternoon. Dave feels like Tom Hanks in the movie Castaway after being stranded for years on a tropical island. "The Torgean Islands look like heaven. But to me, they feel like hell," concluded Dave.