Ambon`s new Swiss-belhotel awaits sail banda participants

Antara News, Otniel Tamindael, Wednesday, May 5, 2010 14:30 WIB

Jakarta, May (ANTARA News) - Participants and would-be spectators of the upcoming international marine event of Sail Banda 2010 will not have to worry about where to stay in Ambon.

Swiss-Belhotel which boasts luxurious facilities and international networks in the scenic Maluku provincial city of Ambon was recently opened to guests, including Sail Banda participants.

Karina Osman, the general manager of Swiss-Belhotel said in Ambon on Wednesday the hotel had started operating in conjunction with National Education Day on May 2, 2010.

Although its grand opening is scheduled to take place on June 18, Karina admitted that all facilities of the four-star hotel have been made ready to be enjoyed by its guests.

Located on Jalan Benteng Kapaha-Ambon in the center of Ambon Municipality, the Swiss-Belhotel Ambon is easily accessible to any businesses, leisure and tourism destination.

"Endowed with the natural beauty of surroundings, the views of mountain and sea enhance the city`s splendor," Karina said.

The only four-star hotel in Ambon features 111 guest rooms with individually-controlled air conditioning, smoke detector and fire alarm system, local and international direct dial (IDD) telephone service, 32 inches flat TV with cable channels, tea and coffee making facilities, personal safety deposit box and high speed internet access.

Swiss-Belhotel Ambon serves extensive food and beverage selections.

Its Swiss-Cafe provides international and local entrees, while its Lucipara Lounge Bar`s light snacks, special drinks and regular live music entertainment is recommended to end a busy day.

"The rooftop can host any special occasion, a perfect venue overlooking the city`s panorama," she said, adding that the hotel has five function rooms available to accommodate from 25 to 500 persons, fitness center, spa and swimming pool for guests to use.

With only 45 minutes leisure journey from Pattimura International Airport, the ride to the hotel is a real sightseeing with the surrounding sea and green mountains.

Founded in 1987, Swiss-Belhotel International is a rapidly expanding hotel management company.

With its headquarters in Hong Kong, Swiss-Belhotel manages hotels in Asia and the Middle East including China.

In Indonesia, Swiss-Belhotels are found in Medan, Batam, Jakarta, Bandung, Semarang, Surabaya, Bogor, Banjarmasin, Samarinda, Tarakan, Palangka Raya, Manado, Palu, Kendari, and, Ambon.

Karina said the presence of Swiss-Belhotel in Ambon is expected to accommodate as many Sail Banda participants and guests as possible.

Besides hotels and motels, homestay accommodations are also offered by a lot of Ambon people to the participants and visitors of Sail Band 2010.

Ambon tourism office spokesman Jimmy Tohata said in Ambon recently that at least 75 people have registered their houses for homestay accommodation as part of their support to the success of the international marine event, scheduled for June 12 - August 17, 2010.

Tohata admitted that he had checked the information from five sub-districts and discovered that some 75 people had registered their house for homestay accommodation for Sail Banda participants.

He said 35 houses in Sirimau sub-district had been registered, 17 in Nusaniwe sub-district, 12 in Baguala sub-district, and 11 at Suli village in Salahutu sub-district.

"Located outside Ambon city, the village of Suli has magnificent panoramic view and promising marine tourism so the people there want to offer homestay accommodation to promote their area," Tohata said.

He said the Ambon tourism office had formed a team which was scheduled to survey the 75 houses which had been registered to ascertain they are fit to serve as homestay accommodation.

"The houses offered for homestay accommodation should be safe, clean and with toilet and bathroom. In addition, the owners should be hospitable and able to communicate in English," he said.

Tohata added that the local tourism office was intensively coordinating with five sub-districts in Ambon to encourage the local people to offer their houses as homestay accommodation for Sail Banda participants.

Sail Banda was officially launched by Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Fadel Muhammad at a ceremony in Ambon on Friday, April 16, 2010, and called on all parties to support the event and make it a success.

Fadel at the time said information about the official launch of Sail Banda 2010 had been disseminated within both the Indonesian and international communities in Indonesia and around the world.

He said the event was named Sail Banda because the Banda islands bear particular historic meaning with countless relics lying scattered across the islands, serving as reminders of the days when Banda was once a major producer of a valuable commodity over which ancient world powers fought protracted wars.

Spices, more specifically nutmeg, mace and cloves, were assets that elevated the Banda islands in the 16th century to the position of the world`s most valuable piece of real estate.

Spice traders from across the globe set out in search of the original Spice Islands, in the hope of returning home with a cargo of the exotic riches.

"In the past Banda was known worldwide as the Spice Islands," said Fadel Muhammad, the chairman of the Sail Banda national committee.

He said Sail Banda was organized with the strategic objective of promoting the undersea natural beauty of Indonesia, especially in Maluku, which is found nowhere else in the world.

Meanwhile, Maluku Governor Karel Albert Ralahalu on the occasion said Sail Banda was expected to be of the greatest advantage imaginable to all people of Maluku which is also known as "the province of one thousand islands."

"This international marine event will be an immense contribution to various social aspects of the people of Maluku in particular, and the people of Indonesia in general," Ralahalu said.

According to Governor Ralahalu, the international marine event of Sail Banda 2010 would be a stepping stone to accelerate the pace of social and economic development in the province.