The developer of San Diego Hills park, an hour's drive from the city, claims this is the world's first graveyard with recreational facilities, the aim being to create a cemetery catering as much to the living as to the dead.

San Diego Hills' director of sales and marketing Manny Francisco says that besides providing a fun day out, the park's attractions ensure that people keep coming back to pay their respects to the dead.

Mr Manny, who has had 20 years' experience working at American cemeteries, says that grieving relatives typically stop visiting their loved ones' graves after about three months.

But at San Diego Hills, which opened at the beginning of last year, he claims that they keep coming back.

'We have had enthusiastic responses, good sales since we opened our gate... We know we're doing something right.'

And to ensure that relatives do not grow bored with the same old features, the park - which is managed by Indonesia's Lippo Group, whose interests range from pay-television to real estate property - continues to add attractions.

After they have tended their relatives' graves, visitors will soon be able to take rowing boats out on the 8ha lake, or splash out on a barge party while enjoying the scenery.

'We are building a fleet right now,' said Mr Manny, referring to a specially built party barge that can accommodate up to 15 people.

Apart from the leisure opportunities, the graveyard has other advantages over the run-of-the-mill Jakarta cemetery.

About 120 people die every day in Jakarta, and typically they are buried in plots of land owned and managed by local governments.

Their relatives lease grave spaces and have to renew their contracts every three years if they want to avoid new graves being dug on top of their loved ones' plots. Cleaning and security fees are charged separately.

Customers buying plots at San Diego Hills, however, need pay only once, with the cheapest lot going for 12 million rupiah (S$1,800). More expensive plots such as those better-sited, like at the peak of a hill, go for up to 30 million rupiah per sq m (big families can buy lots by area).

Between 10 per cent and 15 per cent of the fee is set aside to cover perpetual maintenance costs.

All in all, San Diego Hills seems to have hit on a winning formula, at least as far as Ms Hanna Angkasali, a career woman in her early 30s, is concerned.

'This is different,' she told The Straits Times. 'Common cemeteries are dirty and full of beggars.'

In fact, she is so impressed with San Diego Hills that she bought six plots in June - two for her parents, with the other four as investments which she plans to sell when prices rise.

And Mr Manny expects prices to continue rising. Current prices are 10 per cent higher than last year, he says.

'With cemetery property, prices never go down. They keep increasing steadily. In North America, for example, prices can double every five to seven years.'

Ms Hanna is by no means a rare customer. San Diego Hills, which offers discounts for bulk purchases, says it sold 60 billion rupiah worth of space last year, and expects to pocket a further 80 billion rupiah this year.

The company, which guarantees that graves will not be shared, says it has already developed 50ha of land and expects to develop and fill up 500ha within 75 years.

wahyudis@sph.com.sg