Climate Analysis for Tourist Comfort Level in Belitong Geopark
Aflah Yuliarti(a,b), Budhi Setiawan(c*), M. Yusup Nur Khakim (d)

a) Environmental Management Study Program, Graduate Program, Universitas of Sriwijaya, Palembang 30139, South Sumatera, Indonesia
b) Bangka Belitung Climatology Station, BMKG, Koba 33681, Central Bangka, Bangka Belitung, Indonesia
c) Program Study of Geological Engineering Study Program, Faculty of Engineering, University of Sriwijaya, Palembang 20139, South Sumatera, Indonesia
*budhi.setiawan[at]unsri.ac.id
d) Physics Department, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, University of Sriwijaya, Palembang 20139, South Sumatera, Indonesia

Abstract

Tourism, a sector with significant potential to be developed as a source of regional revenue, is one of the focuses of the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy/Tourism and Creative Economy Agency (Kemenparekraf/Baparekraf) in their quest for sustainable tourism in Indonesia. Their efforts have led to the designation of Belitong Geopark as a UNESCO Global Geopark, a new environmentally-based tourism brand. The comfort of the climate, coupled with the natural beauty of the tourist attractions, plays a crucial role in influencing tourists^ decisions to visit a destination. This study delves into the level of climate comfort for tourism using two different methods: the Tourism Climate Index (TCI) and the Thermal Humidity Index (THI). The climate parameters that form the basis of the climate comfort index, such as air temperature, rainfall, wind speed, length of sunshine, and cloud cover, are part of the thermal, physical, and aesthetic aspects of climate comfort weighting. The climate data from 1991 to 2020 were obtained from the H.AS Hanandjoeddin Meteorological Station. According to the THI, the comfortable months are December to February, while the TCI results indicate that the comfortable period starts in January and February. In conclusion, this study recommends that the best time for tourists to visit Belitong Geopark is in January.

Keywords: Geosite, Tourism, Geopark, comfortable, UNESCO

Topic: Geotourism