Tourism in the Philippines, Indonesia, and Samoa in light of recent disasters

by Brenda Yun on

In light of the recent quakes in the Philippines, Indonesia, and Samoa and the total devastation in the areas surrounding Manila, Padang, and Apia, it’s important to understand what tourism will look like as these tourism hot spots recover. Here’s a look at the current relief work happening in each locale, and some speculation as to what tourism will look like in the coming year.

The Philippines
Nearly a third of Manila, the capital city, was under water after a devastating quake late last month. Today, news is coming in that a second quake hit the Moro Gulf off Mindanao. Recovery in the city will certainly be slow and difficult, and as the main hub in the Philippines, travel will be slow and treacherous, meaning travelers to the Philippines might be better off waiting a few months before embarking on a pleasure trip.



Indonesia
Two massive earthquakes rocked Indonesia. Most recently, the popular surf destination of Padang was completely brought to rubble. Several tourists — most of whom are surfers — are still missing and presumed dead, and the recovery process in this remote area of Sumatra will be very slow. Indonesia has long been a top surfing destination, but in the wake of these earthquakes and the political unrest in this part of the country, travelers may well be wary of traveling to this area — and rightly so.

Samoa
My friend recently returned from a surf trip from Samoa, where she and her boyfriend missed a swell, but are now feeling just fortunate to be safe and home. The resort she stayed in has now been completely destroyed by the tsunami that hit the island after an earthquake struck offshore. Samoa, too, will be slow to recover from such devastation. Like Indonesia, the country is slowly becoming a hot surf destination, but surfers will likely head to less volatile areas in light of these natural disasters.

While tourism for pleasure may slow in all these areas, volunteer opportunities abound. Should you be interested in helping a hand on ground in one of these countries, visit one of the following websites for more information.

Gadlinks for Wednesday 8.26.09

by Brenda Yun on


Welcome to Gadlinks, your source for the latest comings-and-goings in the travel blogosphere. You’ll find these selections a bit indicative of where my brain is at the moment: on surfing, warm weather, and road trips — which is probably because I’ll be embarking on a surfing road trip of my own today. Happy virtual traveling, everyone!

Want more Gadlinks? Go here.

Slum tours in Jakarta now operating

by Stephen Greenwood on

An Indonesian tour operator, is now offering tourists the chance to see the ‘other’ side of Jakarta – a side tucked away from the sprawling shopping malls and 5-star hotels.

Jakarta Hidden Tours is advertising 3 different separate routes through the slums, allowing you to “explore Jakarta with a local and see how the majority of people live, work and raise their kids”.

“Poverty tourism” has come into the spotlight since the release of Danny Boyle’s Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire.

Robert Finlayson, from Volunteering for International Development from Australia, helps run the tours and believes that the tours help social understanding. “Guilt is like pity, it stops you from seeing people as they actually are,” Finlayson was reported as saying. “What we wanted to say is…People are the same all over the world.”

Head of the Jakarta Urban Poor Consortium advocacy group, Wardah Hafidz, disagrees. “”It creates more problems for us than it helps,” Ms Hafidz said. “If you come with money then it’s a complete language of money. It doesn’t develop the understanding that they (the slum dwellers) are powerful, that they can help themselves.”

What do you think? Should tourists support this type of travel?
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[via AFP]

Indonesian Minister: Tourists should wear masks

by Stephen Greenwood on

Indonesian Health Minister, Siti Fadilah Supari has stated that the country will ask all people arriving from swine-flu affected countries to wear face masks for at least three days after arrival.

“Visitors from infected countries should wear masks. It’s a precautionary measure we’re taking to avoid human-to-human transmission of the virus,” Supari told AFP. “We’ll give them the masks when they arrive at the airports and tell them to wear them for three days.”

So far 8 cases of the A(H1N1) Influenza virus have been confirmed, including three Australians and a Briton living in Australia.

“There’ll be no penalty if people don’t wear them. You can’t expect people to wear masks when they’re swimming,” Supari said, adding the masks would be handed out to visitors as soon as possible. Supari made the shock announcement after a ministerial meeting to discuss swine flu.

It remains to be seen whether the Indonesian Health Ministry can get people to put the masks on correctly.

World’s Greatest Dive Spots

by Kraig Becker on

Stephen Regenold is better know by his pseudonym, The Gear Junkie, which he uses when he writes his nationally syndicated column on outdoor adventure and equipment. Recently he penned a story for Travel+Leisure Magazine listing the ten best spots to go SCUBA diving in the world.

In order to come up with his definitive list, Regenold asked ten veteran divers, each of whom have extensive dive experience around the globe, to name their favorite dive spots. The results were a great mix of classic dives and hidden gems. He then compiled them into a slideshow that highlights each location, with an amazing photo, a description of where the dive spot is located, and an explanation of what makes it unique and special.

Some of the locations that make the list include Cenote Taj Maja and Santa Rosalia, both in Mexico. The former is an impressive spot for cave diving, while the latter is famous for allowing divers to get up close and personal with large Humboldt squid. The famous Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands makes the list for it’s abundance of wrecks, with literally dozens of sunken ships in the area, while Utila Island, off the coast of Honduras, is lauded for the twice yearly migration of the whale shark that passes through the surrounding waters.

The list has a little something for everyone, no matter what style of diving you prefer. Each of spots mentioned here offer specatacular waters, amazing sunken sights, and plenty of adventure.