Community Perceptions on the Management of Gedambaan Beach Tourism Objects in Kotabaru Regency, South Kalimantan, Indonesia

Abstract

Gedambaan Village is one of the villages that has tourism potential in Kotabaru Regency, namely Gedambaan Beach. This beach offers two natural atmospheres that can be enjoyed simultaneously, namely views of green mountains and expanses of sea decorated with bagang fishermen, and equipped with various adequate facilities and infrastructure. The existence of coastal tourism will have a positive impact on the local community if they can participate in taking advantage of it as a new business opportunity. On the other hand, this condition will have a negative impact on their livelihoods and will only reduce the ecological quality of the coast if all economic actors there are not able to maintain the environmental sustainability. This study aims to analyze community perceptions of the management of Gedambaan Beach tourism objects. The sample in this study amounted to 101 respondents consisting of 78 local people (approach with the Slovin formula to the number of family heads) and as many as 23 people (census) tourism object managers. Perception analysis was carried out descriptively using a Likert scale calculation. The results of the study showed that the local community feels that the existence of Gedambaan beach tourism did not provide job opportunities and business opportunities for them, while they were of the view that the management of the beach tourism needs support, good relations, and involvement of the local community, especially in environmental conservation.