ANALYSIS OF THE SUITABILITY OF TURTLE CONSERVATION IN THE ECOTOURISM AREA OF THOUSAND ISLANDS NATIONAL PARK KELAPA DUA ISLAND

Abstract

The high pressure on turtle populations due to habitat degradation, exploitation, and low public awareness makes turtle conservation an important issue in coastal area management. Kelapa Dua Island in the Thousand Islands National Park is one of the turtle conservation areas that also has the potential to be developed as a sustainable ecotourism destination. This study aims to analyze the suitability of beach tourism and formulate a sustainability strategy for ecotourism based on turtle conservation. The method used is a survey with quantitative descriptive approaches. Data collection was carried out through field observations, interviews, questionnaires, and measurement of environmental parameters, which were analyzed using the SWOT Matrix and the Grand Strategy Matrix. The results showed that tourist land was classified as "suitable" with an average score of 68%. The conservation strategy shows high effectiveness with a success rate of 71.98% of turtle egg hatching in the last six years. The results of the analysis showed that the community and conservation officers were in Quadrant I (S–O strategy), while tourists were in Quadrant III (W–T strategy). Therefore, ecotourism management strategies need to be focused on optimizing regional strengths and opportunities as well as strengthening community institutions in facing conservation challenges.