The cruise ships brought 23,225 foreign tourists and 116 local tourists, said Jaya Mahendra, head of the Labuan Bajo Immigration Office, on Wednesday.
"These cruise ships docked in the Komodo National Park area. Most visitors came from Australia, the US, the UK, Canada, Germany, and other countries," he stated.
He explained that immigration checks on foreign nationals were conducted in collaboration with Customs, while supervision was carried out by the Komodo National Park Office.
The immigration checks were performed on board the cruise ships to ensure that the passports held by the foreign nationals were valid at the time of data recording, he added.
"The checks are conducted to confirm that travelers are not on the deterrent list, meaning they are not blacklisted from entering Indonesia. It also involves verifying visa ownership. We check everything, and finally, we record the data," he explained.
Mahendra noted that as long as foreign nationals possess valid documents and have not violated any laws, they are permitted to enter Indonesian territory, including Labuan Bajo in West Manggarai Regency.
He urged foreign tourists and tourism service providers to utilize the e-visa service, which simplifies the visa application process.
"There is now a simplified process for issuing and obtaining visas electronically. We encourage both principal and local agencies to inform foreign tourists that immigration offers an easy policy with the e-visa service, which can be accessed anytime, anywhere," he said.
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Translator: Gecio Viana, Yashinta Difa
Editor: Anton Santoso
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