Frankie Najoan, the Indonesian Restaurant Hotel Association's (PHRI) North Sulawesi secretary, elaborated, “The high number of foreign tourists, especially from China, visiting North Sulawesi has not been matched by the number of guides who can speak Mandarin.” The reason? Najoan cited the fact that there are simply not many people in the area who can speak the language in the first place, according to a report by The Jakarta Post.
North Sulawesi is home to some of the most beautiful natural scenery in all of Indonesia, which is why the region has attracted increasing number of tourists from all over the world — including China.
However, the region is also experiencing a shortage of Mandarin-speaking guides to cater to Chinese tourists. Frankie Najoan, the Indonesian Restaurant Hotel Association's (PHRI) North Sulawesi secretary, elaborated, “The high number of foreign tourists, especially from China, visiting North Sulawesi has not been matched by the number of guides who can speak Mandarin.” The reason? Najoan cited the fact that there are simply not many people in the area who can speak the language in the first place, according to a report by The Jakarta Post.
According to Najoan, most of the tour guides accompany Chinese tourists come from outside North Sulawesi, such as Bali, Batam and even China. However, since they are not exactly locals, these tour guides are unable to master the finer details about the location. Najoan also added that some important information about the various places might not be conveyed to the visiting tourists.
Mandarin is not the only language barrier that local tour guides need to overcome. Frankie said that direct flights from South Korea to Manado will be opening soon, and South Korean tourists would want to dine on Korean cuisine when they reach their destination. "From the information we received, South Koreans will soon be streaming to North Sulawesi but we don't even have a restaurant that serves kimchi," Frankie said.