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Belitung (or in English, Billiton) is an island on the east coast of Sumatra, Indonesia in the Java Sea. The island is known for its pepper and for its tin. It was in the possession of the United Kingdom from 1812 until she ceded control of the island to the Netherlands in the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824. Its main town is Tanjung Pandan.
You might not expect it from the island whose tin mines gave their name to Australian mining giant BHP Billiton, but Belitung is among the most beautiful islands in Southeast Asia. Pristine white sand beaches look out on a turquoise sea filled with great snorkelling and a fantastic display of off shore islands. Check out Tanjung Kelayang and Tanjung Tinggi for world class beaches without the hustle and bustle now found at beaches of this calibre elsewhere. Small uninhabited off shore islands range from white sand fringed coconut plantations to elaborate granite rock formations to long temporary sand bars of sand the quality of powdered sugar. Some are too far to swim to from the shore, but colourful local fishing boats will take you on an island tour.
As yet uncharted by the Lonely Planet guide of 2012, no big resorts have been built here yet but it will not remain a sleepy paradise for long. The widely-translated novels Laskar Pelangi (“Rainbow Troops”) published in 2005 and its sequel “The Dreamer” have done a lot to put Belitung on the map of international tourism [1].
The best time to visit: Dry season (April - October) is obviously sunnier but can be very windy, resulting in choppy waters. During the rainy season (November - March) there is less wind though it does rain most afternoons. The school holidays (June-July) are best avoided as a lot of local tourists come from elsewhere in Indonesia. Similarly weekends can be quite busy with large Indonesian tour groups visiting from Jakarta. Interesting annual cultural festivals include:
Tour d’Belitung: 300km bike race around the island held every December [2].
Outrigger sail boat race held every October/November at Burung Mandi Beach. Includes a sand statute competition.
Religion
Before the arrival of Dutch missionaries, the island's inhabitants and most of the Indonesian archipelago had already converted from Hindu-Buddhist and Animist religions to some form of Islam due to the work of Chinese Muslim traders. As a result Christian churches were unable to gain considerable numbers of followers.[citation needed] Today, Belitung is a religiously diverse island. Sunni Islam is the most widely practiced religion, with sizeable minorities of Buddhists, Christians and adherents of Confucianism.
Economy
Belitung is a source of tin, clay, iron ore and silica sands. The Dutch mining company NV Billiton Maatschappij derives its name from the island's name. Billiton merged with BHP in 2001 to form the largest diversified resources company, BHP Billiton.
The island is also a producer of fishery products, pepper, coconut, and palm oil. People work as farmers, fishermen and miners. The island is easily accessible with 4 daily 50-minute flights from Jakarta.
The white sand beaches and offshore islands are helping tourism to become a larger part of the economy.
Tourist destinations
The main tourist destinations are beaches and offshore islands/islets. The beaches are Tanjung Tinggi Beach and Tanjung Kelayang Beach which both have clear blue water, sand and rocky beaches. The islands/islets are Batu Berlayar Island which is mostly granite, Pasir Island which is made of sand (= pasir in Indonesian language) and submerged during high tide, Bird Islet (Pulau Burong, which can be accessed from Tanjung Binga beach by walking at low tide), Lengkuas Island (which is the home of a 129-year-old lighthouse and a good place for snorkeling), Babi Island and Kelayang Islet.[1][2][3] on East Belitung, specifically Kelapa Kampit city, you would find a new tourist attraction (inaugurated on 9 January 2015). A glorious Kong Hu Chu temple called Fu De Ci temple is located in Muten street. This building shortly became a centre piece of its city. It is magnificent and prestigious, nearly 100% of the materials are imported from China. It cost USD 570, 000 to build the whole temple. The temple is expected to attract more tourists to East Belitung area