BESAKIH TEMPLE ~ The amount of foreign tourists that visit Besakih Temple, Karangasem, keep increasing, but it is not matched by an increasing number of domestic tourists, temple officials said this week.

“We have to find the answer to why domestic tourists are less interested in coming to Besakih other places in Bali. For example, the number of domestic visits to Sukawati, Gianyar, is still high,” said one temple official.

In answer to a suggestion that there have been complaints about arrogant and unfriendly guides, IGB Karyawan, deputy head of Karangasem the House of Representatives said separately, “Guides in Besakih attend regular training on how to handle guests, from the Karangasem Tourism Department.”

According to Karyawan, Besakih’s people depend on tourism, so the local guides try as hard as possible to avoid bad attitudes towards tourists.

Besides that, they are superior to the outside guides in leading guests who want to climb Mt. Agung, on whose slopes the temple is situated, since these local guides are very familiar with Besakih area, he said.