Tourist Spatiotemporal Behavior in Cross-Border Tourism Area: A Qualitative Study in the Case of Indonesia-Timor Leste

Cross-border tourism is an emerging topic in the field of tourism, which is still being debated at the level of its definition and characteristics. The debate is important because it can enrich and make the topic of cross-border tourism more mature. In cross-border tourism, tourist spatiotemporal is an essential aspect. Tourist spatiotemporal is a specific study to support the debate on cross-border tourism along with the growth of border areas. Therefore, this study aims to explore tourist spatiotemporal behavior in three border area between Indonesia-Timor Leste. By examining the characteristics of tourist engaged in cross-border tourism, this study seeks to offer a deeper understanding of their behavior. It also aims to provide valuable insights for stakeholders who are involved in managing cross-border tourism. This study employed qualitative methods, specifically through semi-structured interviews to collect data from 30 East Timorese citizens who had crossed Indonesia -Timor Leste border. It was conducted for three months, with one month spent at border gate for each country. Respondents were selected through purposive sampling, taking into account both representativeness and data requirements. This study highlights the unique characteristics of tourist who visit border region between Indonesia-Timor Leste, specifically in area of Mota'ain, Wini, and Motamasin. The results showed that these areas have distinct spatiotemporal behavior among tourist. These differences are observed in various aspects, such as their preferred mode of transportation, motivation for travel, length of stay, and movement patterns. Spatiotemporal characteristics of the three border area between Indonesia-Timor Leste are influenced by a variety of factors. Therefore, this study highlights the importance of diversifying tourist attractions in Indonesia-Timor Leste border area. Improving connectivity between destinations is essential in facilitating tourist visits to Indonesia. In this study, limitations were encountered in applying semi-structured interviews, which took a long time. Furthermore, aspects of motivational links, history, identity, and relations between the two countries have yet to be explored in this study, so future studies are expected to be able to fill this limitation.