Owabong water park outshines Borobudur

Agus Maryono, The Jakarta Post, Purbalingga | Tue, 12/23/2008 10:58 AM  

A modern theme park or rich, cultural world heritage? It seems that in a contest for the tourist dollar between the Owabong water park and the Borobudur Temple, the theme park wins hands down. 

The Owabong water park in Purbalingga regency, Central Java, which is run by the administration, has outstripped the world-renowned Buddhist temple in Magelang, also in Central Java, in terms of revenue, its regent said. 

According to Purbalingga regent Triyono Budisasongko, Owabong rakes in an average of Rp 18 billion (US$1.6 million) a year in earnings, compared with Rp 16 billion for the Borobudur Temple. 

Owabong features a range of water-based games and entertainment, including waterslides and swimming pools. 

"This is amazing. Owabong, a relatively new resort, has been able to outshine Borobudur, famous in Indonesia and throughout the world," Paulus Pangka, manager of the Indonesian Museum of Records (Muri) in Purbalingga, said recently when presenting an award to the Numeristics Museum. 

The Numeristics Museum, recorded as having the biggest collection of coins and banknotes in Indonesia, including 183 foreign banknotes, is bundled with Owabong in one tourist package. 

"Borobudur, which is one of the world's wonders, manages to contribute only Rp 16 billion a year, but Owabong, which was only established in the past five years, can bring in Rp 18 billion in earnings," Pangka said. 

Triyono said the Owabong water park's revenue of Rp 18 billion to date this year came from 1 million visitors. The resort hopes the number of visitors will reach 1.25 million by the end of the school holiday this year. 

"I want Purbalingga to be a full-day tour destination, so visitors can spend a whole day in Purbalingga and not go anywhere else," Triyono told reporters Monday. 

To make the most of Purbalingga's tourism potential, the local administration is currently building supporting tourism facilities to achieve its one-day tour program. 

"One of the projects to be realized next year is an education center in the present tourism complex, targeting students from elementary school to high school," Triyono said. 

Other tourist attractions in the area, besides Owabong, are the Reptile Park, Fruit Park and Numeristics Museum. These four attractions combined have contributed 40 percent, or Rp 20.8 billion, of the regency's total income of Rp 52 billion this year.