Lombok, Sumbawa eying 1 million tourists by 2012

Lombok and Sumbawa in West Nusa Tenggara have set a target of wooing one million tourists to visit the islands by 2012, says an official.

“We are confident of reaching the target,” West Nusa Tenggara culture and tourism agency head Gita Ariadi said Tuesday as quoted by Antara state news agency.

Gita said the agency recorded nearly 620,000 tourist arrivals in Lombok and Sumbawa in 2009, up by 13 percent from a year earlier, thanks to a comprehensive tourism strategy through Meeting, Incentive, Conference and Exhibition (MICE).

This year, the agency is expecting 700,000 tourist arrivals in the two prominent islands, Gita added.