Tour de Loksado on July 7-9, promoting South Kalimantan tourism

Illustration - A vsitor takes a picture from the top of Langara Hill, Meratus Geopark site, Loksado sub-district, South Hulu Sungai District, South Kalimantan, Saturday, May 20, 2023. ANTARA FOTO/Bayu Pratama S/foc.

Banjarmasin, S Kalimatan (ANTARA) - The South Kalimantan Tourism Office (Dispar) has scheduled the 8th Tour de Loksado to be held on July 7-9, 2023. The tour will be coupled with the Loksado Cultural Festival.

Head of the office Muhammad Syarifuddin here on Friday said that 500 Indonesia cyclist are estimated to take part in the yearly cycling tour.

"(This is our chance) to promote our tourism potential in South Kalimantan through sport," he said.

Like last year, the cycling tour will start from Kiram, one of tourist destinations in Banjar District, to go to South Hulu Sungai (HSS) District, exactly to its capital, Kandangan, for a stopover.

Here then, the race will begin to reach the finish line in Loksado, the National Tourism Strategic Area (KSPN) which is one of Meratus Geopark sites.

Syarifuddin expounded that the competition to be devided into four, one for women, and three categories for men based on age groups.

Last year, he said, Tour de Loksado was attended by around 450 participants from 15 provinces in Indonesia.

He hopes the number of participants to increase this year. Especially since South Kalimantan has many natural attractions that can be an attraction for visitors.

Not only general participants, the agency also invites officials from the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy (Kemenparekraf) of the Republic of Indonesia.

Participant who record the fastest time will receive a cash prize from the South Kalimantan Tourism Agency.

Meanwhile, the Tour de Loksado activities will be continued with the Loksado Culture Festival.

Loksado Festival is said to be the only one in the world with an attraction of the adventurous bamboo rafting, which is the mainstay of tourist attraction in HSS District.

The festival introduces a variety of MSMEs' products, local crafts, and regional specialties.

According to Syarifuddin, Loksado Sub-district is one of the National Tourism Strategic Areas (KSPN) designated by the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy.