Waisak Celebration at Borobudur Temple Has the Potential to Become a Magnet for Spiritual Tourism Visits

The celebration of Tri Suci Waisak 2567 BE at Borobudur Temple is a momentum to increase the value of Borobudur Temple. In the future, this world cultural heritage temple will be developed sustainably, prioritizing educational, spiritual, and cultural values.

Director of Marketing, Services, and Business Development of PT Taman Wisata Candi Borobudur, Prambanan and Ratu Boko (TWC), Hetty Herawati said this is in line with the Asian market share which is the center of the spiritual tourism market. 

"Asia is a huge market for pilgrimage tourism. Not only does it have spiritual advantages, Borobudur Temple also has universal values," said Hetty at Borobudur Temple, Magelang, Central Java, Saturday (3/6/2023).

Hetty gave an example of how the warm welcome of the Indonesian people, both from Muslims, Christians, Catholics, Hindus, and Confucians to 32 monks who underwent the Thudong ritual or walked to Borobudur Temple. Hetty believes that the appeal of Borobudur Temple will continue to increase with a number of breakthroughs that increasingly provide comfort for Buddhists and tourists.

"In my opinion, this Waisak celebration is the first step towards a better future by developing connectivity to become an ecosystem for people who are enthusiastic about spiritual tourism as well as general tourists," said Hetty.

Separately, SOE Minister Erick Thohir said that 42 percent of Southeast Asia's population is Buddhist. Erick assessed that the existence of Borobudur Temple should be a medium as proof of the strength of religiousness in Indonesia.

"Forty-two percent is a big number and coincidentally Allah SWT gave Borobudur Temple to our nation. I think this is special and is part of continuing to maintain differences as strength," said the man born in Jakarta.

For that reason, Erick continues to encourage the state-owned tourism holding and supporters or Injourney and its subsidiary, PT Taman Wisata Candi Borobudur, Prambanan and Ratu Boko (TWC), to maintain the balance of Borobudur Temple. Erick emphasized that the arrangement of Borobudur Temple is not only based on tourism aspects, but also maintains spiritual, educational, and historical values.

"As an invaluable asset, we want to maintain the balance in Borobudur Temple as a tourist attraction, but it has spiritual, educational, and historical value. This balance is what we must maintain, don't let this extraordinary Borobudur only become a tourist attraction, but lose its spiritual value," he concluded.