Makassar Tourism Polytechnic (Poltekpar) once again held the 2025 Marine Tourism Festival, taking place from September 17–20, 2025. The festival, themed “Marine Tourism and Sustainable Transformation,” demonstrates the educational world’s commitment to supporting the development of an inclusive and environmentally conscious tourism sector. It opened at the I Wayan Bendhi Hall on Wednesday, September 17, 2025.
Dr. Syahrial, Chair of the Committee and Deputy Director 3 for Student Affairs, stated that this festival is not just a celebration but also a space for active participation by the local community. He believes that community involvement is key to maintaining a balance between tourism development and environmental conservation.
“We designed this festival to integrate culture, education, and the environment. The community will not only be present as spectators, but also as a vital part of cultural exchange and agents of environmental conservation,” he said.
Furthermore, the 2025 Marine Tourism Festival will strengthen the synergy between the government, academia, the private sector, and civil society.
“This cross-sector collaboration is expected to create a more resilient, innovative, and sustainable marine tourism ecosystem in Indonesia, particularly in the eastern region,” he said.
As part of the event, the committee is presenting various competitions divided into online and offline categories. For the online category, there are five competitions: the Marine Tour Tickets Competition, the Storytelling Competition, the Marine River Building Competition, the Marine Expression Video Competition, and the Seaways Art Competition.
Meanwhile, for the offline category, there are six competitions ready to be held: the Ocean Mixology Competition, the Marine Peace Innovation Competition, the Minijia Ice-Tech Finishing Competition, the Acoustic Music Competition, the Beach Volleyball Competition, and the Fishing Competition.
These competitions are attended by representatives from various universities, both under the auspices of the Ministry of Tourism and other universities. This confirms that this festival is an open collaborative space for students across campuses to create and innovate in the field of marine tourism.
“All these activities are designed to enable students, industry players, and the community to be creative and share new ideas in the context of marine tourism,” he said.
Dr. Syahrial hopes this festival will become a platform for the birth of fresh ideas to address the challenges of marine tourism. He emphasized that this sector is not just about entertainment, but also an economic asset whose sustainability must be maintained.
“Hopefully, the 2025 Marine Tourism Festival will be a valuable momentum. We want Indonesia’s marine tourism to grow as a globally competitive asset without sacrificing its sustainability,” he concluded.
The Director of the Makassar Tourism Polytechnic, Dr. Herry Rachmat Widjaja, added that the Marine Tourism Festival is one of three main pillars of strengthening marine tourism, making it the “Center of Excellence” of the Makassar Tourism Polytechnic.
The first pillar is the regular holding of this festival starting in 2023; the second pillar is an international conference; and the third pillar is the establishment of a Center for Marine Tourism Studies.
“This year, the Makassar Tourism Polytechnic will also once again hold the International Conference on Marine Tourism and Hospitality Study (ICMTHS),” he said.
Herry stated that the conference, scheduled for October 18, 2025, will serve as an academic forum to discuss research, ideas, and strategies for advancing global marine tourism.
“Through ICMTHS, we invite academics to submit papers that can make real contributions. We hope this discussion will produce strategic recommendations to support the sustainability of marine tourism,” he explained.
Furthermore, the Makassar Tourism Polytechnic is also strengthening its Marine Tourism Study Center, which will serve as a platform for research and development based on real-life cases in eastern Indonesia.
“This study center is expected to serve as a reference in developing marine-based tourism planning and policy documents,” he added.
Herry emphasized that these three pillars align with the Ministry of Tourism’s flagship programs, which include marine tourism, gastronomy, and wellness tourism. Makassar Tourism Polytechnic is committed to making these three pillars the academic and practical foundation for producing professionals in the tourism sector.
The 2025 Marine Tourism Festival also coincides with the 34th anniversary of Makassar Tourism Polytechnic. This momentum further strengthens the academic community’s enthusiasm for innovation, research, and collaboration to support national tourism development.
In addition, the series of activities also featured a clean tourism initiative. This program included a semi-trail run along the Jenderal River to Layar Putih Beach, involving students, lecturers, and the community. “The goal is to instill environmental values in these activities.”