Tobelo, North Maluku (ANTARA) - The tourism office of North Halmahera District, North Maluku Province, organized a creative economic training for tourist guides as the number of domestic and foreign tourists visiting the region has been increasing.

"At present, 100 tourist guides have been trained, including those engaged in culinary, arts and other businesses, so they get better knowledge of the local tourist attractions and culinary here," Irwan Rainu, head of the North Halmahera tourism office , said here on Sunday.

Creative economic in the tourism sector is expected to help boost the economy of the local community, he said.

Erasmus Joseph Papilaya, assistant to the North Halmahera District Head, said the aspects of accessibility, security convenience and creativity are crucial for the tourism development.

Related news: Salai festival could be a national tourism activity

North Halmahera has a number of interesting but less known tourist destinations, such as Tanjung Bongo, which is dubbed the mini Raja Ampat, one of Indonesia's most famous marine tourist destination located in West Papua.

Tanjung Bongo is a cape located at Pune Village, Galela sub-district, and has very beautiful scenery and crystal clear water. It is basically a coastal area with many small rocky islands with green vegetation.

Tobelo, the capital of North Halmahera, has at least 16 tourist attractions, including a cluster of small islands with white sandy beaches.

Related news: North Halmahera to allocate rp20 billion for Sail Morotai

Translator: Abdul Fatah, Fardah
Editor: Sri Haryati
Copyright © ANTARA 2019