Gunungkidul Regency is rich in tourism potential, including the Jomblang Cave tourist destination in the Polarejo Village, Semanu.
This tourist attraction is located on the east side of Wonosari City. It can be reached by motorbike in about 15 minutes. Visitors need not worry because many signposts are already leading to the location.
Jomblang Cave is included in a special interest tourist destination. The reason is it takes big guts to explore this tourist spot. Arriving at the location, visitors must use personal protective equipment ranging from boots, helmets and wearing a harness or body strap.
After everything is installed, visitors will be guided down the abyss with a depth of about 60 meters. The descent process is carried out manually by using a rope attached to the harness attached to the visitor’s body so that the visitor feels a hanging sensation while heading to the bottom of the lung.
Arriving at the bottom, visitors still find a way down to get to the mouth of the cave. It was also dark inside the cave, so when walking, you had to use a flashlight to reach the location of the light from heaven.
Inside the cave, there is a lung that people know as Grubuk. Because it is exposed to sunlight that enters through the mouth of the lung, it reveals beauty because it looks like there is a spotlight from above.
At this location, a large rock is used to take pictures to capture the phenomenon of light from heaven. As for under the rock, there is an underground river that never dries up.
One of the guides at Luweng Jomblang, Budiyanto, said this special interest tour has a tariff of IDR 500,000 per person. Visitors can enjoy the cave walk from Luweng Jomblang to Luweng Grubuk to see the phenomenon of sunlight, often called “the light of heaven.” “If it’s good to come at 08.00 WIB-09.00 WIB, and if it’s not cloudy, you can see the phenomenon,” he said.
Budiyanto admitted that during the early days of the pandemic, tourism activities were completely closed. However, now it is starting to return to normal, with visits of around 30 people per day. “The majority are foreign tourists. For tours, potential visitors can make reservations to the number provided,” he said.
Gunungkidul Regent Sunaryanta said that Gunungkidul has various natural potentials, some of which have been developed for tourist destinations. One is the Jomblang Cave in Jetis Hamlet, Pacarejo Village, Semanu.
“I was swimming in the underground river. The water is so fresh. There is a distinct sensation when swimming in a cave and seeing the beam of light from the mouth of the mongoose,” said Sunaryanta.
Sunaryanta acknowledged that Jomblang Cave still needs to be improved as a tourist destination. One of them concerns the road’s condition, which is still not feasible. “I instruct the Head of the Tourism Office so that Jomblang’s potential can be further promoted,” he said.
