Jakarta (Antara Babel) - At less than two-hour leisurely drive from Pangkalpinang, the center of Bangka-Belitung (Babel) provincial administration, a diverse range of tourism experiences await visitors at the Gusong Beach.
Situated at Batu Beriga village in Central Bangka District, Babel Province, the Gusong beach remains unknown to many people but is noted for its variety of spectacular scenery enabling visitors to enjoy an unspoiled sandy beach and beautiful mountain forests in proximity.
Visitors who set foot on this pristine, beautiful Gusong Beach to swim, dive, snorkel, or just stroll along the shoreline, find it difficult to return home or to their accommodations.
Bangka Island has many beautiful beaches such as Tanjung Pesona Beach, Batu Berdaun Beach, Pasir Padi Beach, Parai Tenggiri Beach, and Matras Beach for tourists to relax and unwind, but Gusong Beach provides a unique experience because of its natural panorama.
With the coastline on both the sides, the white sands of the beach stretch up to 2km.
Taking note of its abundant marine tourism attraction, the Central Bangka district government should start developing the Gusong Beach as a family getaway for both domestic and foreign tourists.
The beach has a natural scenery that is unique compared with any other beach, Fauzie, a local tourist visiting the Gusong Beach remarked.
It has tremendous potential and was formed naturally, Fauzie said. It has a vast expanse of sand, calm sea waters, still intact corals, and lush tropical forests. The local government should develop it into a mainstay tourist attraction in Central Bangka, he noted.
"I think the local government needs to package the Gusong Beach well and develop it into one of the mainstay tourist destinations, because this beach is no less beautiful than the other beaches in Indonesia," he suggested.
The natural panorama of Gusong Beach is amazing, but unfortunately, not many people are aware of this potential tourist attraction, he added.
Another visitor Rudianto, pointed out that the local government was yet to utilize the potential of the Gusong Beach to make it a tourist magnet.
"Gusong Beach is less popular than the other beaches in Bangka Island, because this beach is managed by local villagers independently without any support from the local government," Rudianto observed.
Further, he stressed that if the local government had packaged and managed the Gusong Beach well, it would have become one of the mainstay tourist destinations, besides Ketawai Island, in Central Bangka.
Central Bangka has become a tourist destination in Babel Province because of its beauty, but being attractive is not enough. Such destinations need to have adequate facilities.
Ketawai Island, for instance, is a stopover point for yachts from various countries, attracting both local and foreign tourists.
Situated some 18km from the Babel provincial city of Pangkalpinang, this uninhabited island is known for its beaches and underwater landscape, filled with sea grass and coral reefs.
Because of its natural beauty, the island was included on the list of recommended places to visit, as part of the Sail Karimata 2016 activities.
Ketawai island in Central Bangka is about 18km from Pangkalpinang, the capital city of Bangka Belitung province.
It is spread over 28 hectares and is approximately 6 nautical miles from the village of Kurau in Koba town.
To reach the Ketawai Island from Kurau village, visitors can rent a fishing boat for Rp500 thousand, which will take an hour to reach the spot.
Kurau village can be reached by land from the Pangkal Pinang city in about 30 minutes.
During the cruise, visitors can see the thick mangroves on the beach, and watch tin mining being undertaken at several locations.
At the Ketawai Island, visitors are greeted with clear seawater, and can get a clear view of the small fish swimming around the floating dock on the shoreline of the island.
In Ketawai Island, the visitors can get around the island by hiring a motor boat for about 45 minutes.
In addition to the beautiful beach, the island also has beautiful underwater scenery, including sea grass, coral reefs, and a school of ornamental fish.
During the Sail Karimata event in October 2016, as many as 22 yachts from Germany, France, the United States, Sweden, Australia, Switzerland, Italy, and Singapore had anchored at Ketawai Island.
The Ketawai administration had organized traditional cultural and art performances to entertain the visitors.
Together with the local villagers, the foreign yachters had also participated in a beach clean-up drive and the release of 100 baby turtles.
They praised the beauty of the island and the hospitality of the local people who had greeted them enthusiastically.
"This is one of the most beautiful islands that we have ever visited. It is very pretty, and we are very charmed by it," Nilian, an Australia yachter, said at the time.
Nilian believed the island was the ideal location for a yacht stopover, because it was clean and hardly touched by developmental activities.
