Lutfi Handayani

BA, English – Sanata Dharma University, 2009
MSc, Tourism Studies – Gajah Mada University, 2015

Lutfi’s passions for travel and experiential education began when she first worked as a tour guide after graduating from Sanata Dharma University. In this role, she took her clients to off-the-beaten-path places that enabled them to experience the local culture in truly “local” and real ways. Lutfi thoroughly enjoyed these meaningful cultural exchanges. She loved listening to and learning from the stories people told about their home countries, which awoken her to the fact that there was much more in the world to explore.

Craving to expand her knowledge, Lutfi was awarded a full scholarship for her masters degree studies at Gajah Mada University. Majoring in Tourism, she learned about the complexities of the industry from cultural sustainability and ecotourism to government laws and policies to marketing, governance, and management. Her thesis focused on the impacts of tourist scams in Yogyakarta, as she often bore witness to the maltreatment of tourists and travelers in her hometown and wanted to know how it impacted individuals and the industry.

Lutfi first came to Dragons as a host family member in 2013. She really enjoyed being an older sister and mentor for many Dragons students over the years, so much so that she decided to work year-round for Dragons! In her free time, you’ll find Lutfi outside camping and exploring new places. A sportswoman, she loves to play and watch basketball, soccer, martial arts (Pencak Silat), and badminton.