'Jong' Boat Competition in Preserving Malay Culture as a Tourist Attraction

Abstract

The uniqueness and tourism attraction in a destination motivates tourists to travel to visit the destination and they often participate in the attraction. The ‘Jong’ boat race is held every year in Sembulang Village in the context of welcoming 17^th August, is a culture of fishermen who live on the coast. The ‘Jong Boat Race’ is a typical folk game of Malay culture which has been carried hereditary. The ‘Jong Boat Race’, opens the opportunities to become the tourist attractions, the first uniqueness of the ‘Jong Boat Race’ is it sails without a boat crew, the speed of boat is controlled by winds. The second uniqueness is the boat sails is made of striking colorful cloth, so that the boat’s owner can watch from afar; sometimes it looks as if the boat’s owner is chasing his boat in the wind. The third is the boat “Jong” is a folk game that contains stories as local genuises of fisherman lives. This study uses a descriptive method with a multidisciplinary approach, the reason is that tourism research is a social and cultural problem that requires a view and analysis from the various scientific perspectives. The study results are expected to the ‘Jong’s boat race to attract foreign and domestic tourists in attracting Malay culture