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Feasibility study of bongo village, gorontalo district as a religious

tourism destination
Yumanraya Noho¹*, Lisna Bantulu¹
*¹Department of Tourism, Faculty of Letters and Culture,
Gorontalo State University
¹*Email: [email protected]

ABSTRACT ARTICLE INFO

Article history:
This study aims to assess the feasibility of Bongo Village in the Gorontalo Received 07 Oct 2020
Regency as a religious tourism destination. The method used uses a qualitative Received in revised form 10 Nov 2020
descriptive approach by using Islamic religious tourism indicators, including Accepted 15 Nov 2020

tourists' motivation to visit Bongo Village, the behaviour of tourists while in

tourist objects, the availability of halal food and drinks, and the availability of
Keywords:
halal accommodation. The study results found that the application of religious Feasibility Study, Bongo Village,
tourism indicators in Bongo Village still experienced several obstacles, including Religious Tourism Destinations
the behaviour and ways of dressing some tourists and local people who were not -------------------------------------------

following Islamic law. No accommodation was following the standard of halal

accommodation according to international rules. However, in terms of tourism
activities, several activities represent religious tourism activities where some
tourists visiting Bongo Village are to study religious histories such as studying
the Walima tradition as the Prophet's Birthday Commemoration and the
activities of Pesantren Alam. In terms of food provision, several food stalls in
Bongo Village have provided halal food. However, a halal certification from the
MUI still has to be supported to ensure the trust of Muslim tourists when visiting
Bongo Village.
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Introduction

The Indonesian people's lives are closely related to religion, especially in several areas where many
locations are used as religious tourism places for adherents of various kinds of religious adherents in
Indonesia. Some of these areas are Mahmud Village in Bandung Regency, Buntu Burake in Tanah Toraja
Regency, and also Sendangsono in Kulonprogo, Yogyakarta. These places provide a religious experience
for tourists who come for pilgrimages. Apart from these places, Gorontalo also has historical places in
religious terms and has many values learned by tourists visiting Gorontalo.
Gorontalo is a province in Indonesia formed under Law Number 38 of 2000 and has become the
32nd province in Indonesia. Gorontalo Province is one of the provinces located on the peninsula of

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Sulawesi Island, to be precise in the western part bordering Central Sulawesi Province and the eastern part
bordering North Sulawesi Province. Based on the Gorontalo Province BPS data, the area of Gorontalo
province is around 12,435.00 km, with a total population density in 2017 of 1,168.10 people. Gorontalo
Province has five districts and one city, namely Gorontalo Regency, North Gorontalo Regency, Boalemo
Regency, Pohuwato Regency, Bone Bolango Regency and Gorontalo City. The capital city of Gorontalo
province is Gorontalo City, known as the City of Serambi Madinah.
In Gorontalo, there are many types of tourism, ranging from artificial tourism, marine tourism,
cultural tourism and village tourism. One of the tourist destinations that are considered capable of fulfilling
tourists' desires for a tourist village is Bongo Village. Bongo Village is located in Batudaa Pantai District,
Gorontalo Regency. This Village initially developed as a religious village because, in this Village every
year, a Walima celebration of religious activities is held in commemoration of the Prophet Muhammad's
birthday, which falls every 12th of Rabiul Awal in the Hijri year. One of the stakeholders developed this
Village with religious education facilities, namely Pesantren. The purpose of building this pesantren is so
that local people get an education about religion and culture in Bongo Village. It also built a place of
breeding or maintenance of sparrows with the aim that tourists can enjoy the beauty and can also feed the
sparrows. Apart from these facilities, the community has also built a worship facility, namely a mosque
called the Walima Emas Mosque, located on a rural hill facing the sea, and developed by stakeholders by
adding a small pool around also a shelter for tourists visiting the mosque. The following is a table of the
Number of Domestic and International Tourists visiting Bongo Village in 2019. The community also built a
worship facility, namely a mosque called the Walima Emas Mosque, located on a rural hill facing the sea.
Stakeholders developed it by adding a small pool around the mosque and a shelter for tourists visiting the
mosque. The following is a table of the Number of Domestic and International Tourists visiting Bongo
Village in 2019. The community also built a worship facility, namely a mosque called the Walima Emas
Mosque, located on a rural hill facing the sea. Stakeholders developed it by adding a small pool around the
mosque and a shelter for tourists visiting the mosque. The following is a table of the Number of Domestic
and International Tourists visiting Bongo Village in 2019.
Table 1
Number of Domestic and International Tourists in Bongo Village in 2019
Domestic International
Month
Tourist Tourists
January 8430 10
February 3516 10
March 4754 10
April 4573 10
May 3784 10
June 3798 10
July 4370 2
August 3781 5
September 3862 3
October 3732 0
November 3985 20
December 7000 4
amount 55585 94
Source: Department of Tourism, Culture, Communication and Information, Gorontalo District

Based on table 1, the highest level of local tourist visits to Bongo Village is in January. That month, there is a
Walima traditional celebration to coincide with the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad, SAW. Akhyar (2013)
in Noho (2014) states that the concept of religious tourism is a tourism that contains religious values to refresh
the brain and heart to increase the spirit of life. He added that the concept of religious tourism contains religious
values in its tourist objects so that tourists do not feel bored with the twists of life. However, as a village
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designated by the Gorontalo provincial government as a Religious Tourism Village. In its implementation,
Bongo Village still has several problems in the practice of tourism activities. The unpreparedness of the
infrastructure supports the concept of religion in question. These problems include (1) The lack of religious or
Islamic tourism activities apart from the traditional walima celebration activities to commemorate the Prophet
Muhammad's birthday. According to the religious label in their Village, SAW, (2) The lack of community
awareness and behaviour in carrying out Islamic religious activities. Tourists who visit have not fully obtained
spiritual experiences as befits a religious tourism destination. The purpose of this research is to examine the
feasibility of Bongo Village as a Religious Tourism Destination. (1) The lack of religious or Islamic tourism
activities other than the walima traditional celebration activities to commemorate the birthday of the Prophet
Muhammad. According to the religious label in their Village, SAW, (2) The lack of community awareness and
behaviour in carrying out Islamic religious activities. Tourists who visit have not fully obtained spiritual
experiences as befits a religious tourism destination. The purpose of this research is to examine the feasibility of
Bongo Village as a Religious Tourism Destination. (1) The lack of religious or Islamic tourism activities other
than the walima traditional celebration activities to commemorate the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad.
According to the religious label in their Village, SAW, (2) The lack of community awareness and behaviour in
carrying out Islamic religious activities. Tourists who visit have not fully obtained spiritual experiences as befits
a religious tourism destination. The purpose of this research is to examine the feasibility of Bongo Village as a
Religious Tourism Destination. So that tourists who visit have not fully gained a spiritual experience as befits a
religious tourism destination. The purpose of this research is to examine the feasibility of Bongo Village as a
Religious Tourism Destination. So that tourists who visit have not fully gained a spiritual experience as befits a
religious tourist destination. The purpose of this research is to examine the feasibility of Bongo Village as a
Religious Tourism Destination.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Religious Tourism
Religious tourism is defined by Yeoman (2008) in Noho (2014)) as follows
“Traveling to visit a place, a building or a shrine, which is sacred. This form of travel is either about
observing or participating according to one's belief and sharing a religious experience with someone,
and witnessing the faith. "

That according to Yeoman, religious tourism is a journey to visit a sacred place, building or holy place. This
type of travel is done either to make observations or participate in a belief and share religious experiences.
Akhyar (2013) in Noho (2014) mentions religious tourism as a tour that contains worship values (religion)
to provide refreshment for the brain and heart (feelings), which can make the spirit to live. He added that the
concept of religious tourism contains "religiousness" in its tourist objects so that tourists do not feel bored with
the twists and turns of life.
Richard (2007) in Noho (2014) provides the following views on religious tourism.
"However, a tourism package might include a visit to a religious site, like a church or cathedral, but this
does not make the trip religious, but rather cultural, as people visit a church as part of their itinerary and
they do not travel for religious purposes. Most cultural trips involve a visit to such religious places, which
does not make them religious trips. "
According to Richard, some tour packages contain visits to worship, such as churches or cathedrals.
These trips can call religious tourism and cultural tourism because some visit them only as part of a package, not
for travel. Religious purposes from some of the above meanings, it can be concluded that the definition of
religious tourism cannot on the type of tour that visits historical places of worship. However, it must consider
the tourist's motives where the visit must have an excellent religious, spiritual purpose for merit. Alternatively,
deepen the knowledge of religion, not just looking around, for example, on a tour sightseeing destination.

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Indicators of Religious Tourism (Halal Tourism)

According to Sanad, Kassem, & Scott (2010), tourism is a human right under Islamic law and Muslims
who prohibit tourism do not know the true nature of Sharia. Then, the essence of halal tourism itself depends on
the destination. Each individual travels to tourist objects to get the blessing of Allah SWT, which then raises
various types of tourism activities, for example, studying the history of religious life in the past, studying the
history of prophets, friends, Sunan and past religious figures. , studying the history of places of worship,
religious wars, etc.
In addition to intention, Sanad, Kassem, & Scott (2010) conveyed another thing that is characteristic of
halal tourism: religious tourism, which represents the activities permitted in Islamic teachings in terms of
behaviour clothing and food. To know whatever the exact size of tourism is halal or not, it is an indicator as a
reference. Jaelani (2017) states that the general criteria for halal tourism oriented towards the common good;
oriented towards enlightenment, refreshment, and serenity; avoid idolatry and superstition; free from sin;
maintain safety and comfort; protect the environment; and respecting social values, culture and local wisdom.
Another indicator said by Gabdrakhmanov et al. (2016), namely halal tourism requires halal food, drinks and
entertainment; announcement of the time of worship; Praying room; separate pool (by gender); and no music.
Battour et al. (2018) stated that halal food, according to Sharia, is apart from the following: (1). pork, (2).
animals killed without being slaughtered, (3). animals were not slaughtered in the name of Allah, (4). blood, (5).
alcohol, (6). predatory animals, and (7). birds of prey.
As previously mentioned, the halalness of a halal tourism product is not limited to food. Another
indicator is accommodation, for example, a hotel. Bogan & Sarıı Sık (2018) divides halal hotels into three
categories: (1). Dry hotels or hotels that only prohibit the availability of alcohol; (2). Partially halal hotels or
hotels that provide halal food, places of worship, Al-Qur'an and prayer mats in the room (sleeping), separating
services for women and men, (3). Halal hotels or hotels that follow sharia rules for all facilities, from design to
hotel finance, apply other things to the halal concept in the two types above of halal hotels. Thus, halal tourism
is carried out by applying Islamic values,
Table 2
Indicators of Eligibility for Religious Destinations
No. Indicator
1. Motivation / Intention of the tour
2. Travel Behavior and Dressing
3. Provision of Halal Food and Beverages
4. Provision of Halal Accommodation
Source: Faza (2019) modified
Methods
The method used in this research is a qualitative descriptive approach. This research took place in
Bongo Village, Gorontalo District. The location was chosen because it has all the supporting aspects so that
the research can run well. To obtain data, the author uses observation, interviews, and documentation:
Observation is a way of collecting data by observing and taking notes directly at the research site. Then the
interview was conducted by direct contact with selected informants using purposive sampling. Resources.
Through this interview, the researcher digs up data, information, and interview techniques that carried out
guided free interviews, meaning that the questions asked are not fixed on the interview guide and can be
deepened or developed following the field's situation and conditions. Interviews were conducted with the
village head of Bongo Village, the manager, especially PKBM Yotama, the Tourism Awareness Group, the
local community, and the visitors they met.
In analyzing the data, the researcher will use continuous observation and triangulation techniques.
Using this continuous observation technique is done by continuously observing the subject under study to
understand the symptoms more deeply so that they can find out important aspects according to the study's
focus. At the same time, the triangulation technique is a data validity checking technique that utilizes
something other than the data for checking purposes or compared to the data. The triangulation of data
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sources explores the truth of certain information through various methods and sources of data collection.
For example, apart from observations and interviews, researchers can use written documents, archives,
historical documents, official records, involved observations, personal notes or writing and pictures or
photos. Each of these methods will produce different data, which will provide a different view of the
phenomenon under study.

Research Results and Discussion

The term religious tourism, primarily Islamic religious tourism, is quite popular among tourism actors.
In terms of naming, some call it pilgrimage tourism, sharia tourism, religious tourism, and most recently halal
tourism, such as the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) using the word "Sharia." In contrast, the NTB Governor
in its regulations uses the term "Halal". The essence of this tourism activity is not just visiting tourist objects in
places of worship or grave pilgrimages. Religious tourism must be supported by restaurants and hotels that
provide halal food and prayer places (Faza, 2019).
To measure the suitability of religious tourism in Bongo Village with the concept of religious tourism applied
by the religious or halal tourism industry in general. Therefore, researchers analyzed based on indicators as
found in Faza's (2019) study as follows:

(1) Motivation / Intention of the tour

According to Sanad, Kassem, & Scott (2010), tourism is a human right under Islamic law and Muslims
who prohibit tourism do not know the true nature of Sharia. Then, the essence of halal tourism itself depends on
the destination. Each individual travels to tourist objects to get the blessing of Allah SWT, which then raises
various types of tourism activities, for example studying the history of religious life in the past, studying the
history of prophets, friends, Sunan and past religious figures. , studying the history of places of worship,
religious wars, etc.
Based on researchers' observations in the field, the general motivation for tourists to visit Bongo Village
consists of religious and non-religious motivations. The religious motivation to visit Bongo Village can
represented, one of which is the implementation of the Walima Tradition as a celebration of the Prophet
Muhammad's birthday, where this religious tradition has historical value for King's reign Hilalumo Amay from
1750 to 1792. Following religious tourism, indicators to gain knowledge about the Prophets and the religious
traditions of the past. However, some tourists visit this tradition only to take pictures without learning the value
and essence of its implementation.
From the Tourism Village's management side, other religious tourism activities besides the walima tradition are
studying the Al-Quran at the natural boarding school pioneered by the late. Mr. Yosef Tagir Maruf, but based on
interviews with the manager, tourism activities for "boarding," aka staying overnight to study the Koran, are
only in demand by very few tourists. Most of the tourist visits in Bongo Village are non-religious in nature, such
as taking pictures or sitting around the Walima Emas mosque without worshiping or bathing in a pool 99
without heeding Islamic law that there is no mixing between men and women. So it can be concluded that
religious tourism activities in Bongo Village are not yet perfect as the planned Islamic Religious Tourism
concept's goal.

(2) Travel Behavior and Dressing

Another indicator in the concept of Jaelani tourism is travelling behaviour and how to dress according to
the Sharia, in this case, Islamic law. Jaelani in Faza (2019) states that behaviour in sharia tourism activities must
be oriented to enlightenment, refreshment and calmness, avoid idolatry and superstition, be free from sin,
maintain security and comfort, protect the environment, and respect social, cultural values, and local wisdom.
However, from the results of observations by researchers in the field and interviews with managers, the tourism
behaviour that occurs in Bongo Village does not reflect religious behaviour. The first thing to highlight is the
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use of clothes that are partly un-Islamic. The application of the concept of Islamic religious tourism in Bongo
Village must apply visitor management in terms of clothing. For example, checking the condition of tourists'
clothes from the entrance, whether it is according to Islamic law or not, if not, the manager should be able to
prepare clothes that can be rented or lent, such as trousers and songkok for men, or skirts and veils for women.
Also, the manager does not include rules that limit the behaviour of tourists around tourist objects. Like not
holding hands between men and women who are not mahram. What happens around the tourist area is that
many young people are dating around the mosque area or bathing men and women mixed in 99 ponds, where
there should be separate pools (based on gender. Likewise, tourism activities are still not separated according to
gender in the area. Dulanga Beach.
From the local community side, it also seems that they do not understand and are not ready for the concept of
religious tourism applied in their Village. Local people also do not heed the dress code when tourists pass by in
the Village, such as only wearing a negligee or house clothes outside the house. In the future, if the manager
wants to apply the appropriate religious concept, the above rules must be enforced.

(3) Provision of Halal Food and Beverages

When a destination applies the concept of religious or halal tourism, Battour et al. (2018) stated that
these destinations should avoid some of the following foods: (1). pork, (2). animals killed without being
slaughtered, (3). animals not slaughtered in the name of Allah, (4). blood, (5). alcohol, (6). predatory animals,
and (7). birds of prey. From the investigations by researchers in the field, it found that food stalls in the Bongo
Village area had provided halal food because most people in Bongo Village were Muslim, so there was no non-
halal food. However, be supported by an official halal label such as a label from the Indonesian Ulema Council
(MUI) to convince visitors of the manufacturing process, such as slaughtering livestock.

(4) Provision of Halal Accommodation

Bogan & Sarıı Sık (2018) divides halal hotels into three categories: (1). Dry hotels or hotels that only
prohibit the availability of alcohol; (2). Partially halal hotels or hotels that provide halal food, places of worship,
Al-Qur'an and prayer mats in the room (sleeping), separating services for women and men, (3). Halal hotels or
hotels that follow sharia rules for all facilities, from design to hotel finance, and other things that are applied to
the halal concept in the two types above of halal hotels.
Based on researchers' observations in the field, so far in Bongo Village, there are still few guests who stay
overnight. Bongo Village accommodation is also only a simple homestay that is not equipped with sharia
regulations like the above category. In the future, the manager must prepare halal homestay accommodation free
from haram food and drinks, the availability of worship facilities and separate rooms for guests who are not
married couples. Thus, religious tourism, Sharia, halal or whatever its name can be carried out by applying
Islamic values, where the perpetrators follow His orders and stay away from His prohibitions. Marketing of this
tourist attraction can no longer be done to the general tourism market, but offered to specific segments, mostly
Muslim tourists,

Conclusions and recommendations

After going through the identification stages through observation, interviews, and other supporting data,
it was found that the application of the religious concept in Bongo Tourism Village had not yet been
implemented following the indicators of Religious Tourism as a whole. In terms of tourism activities,
several activities represent tourism activities with religious motivation to study religious history, such as
studying the Walima tradition as the commemoration of the Prophet's birthday, and boarding activities at
Pesantren Alam. From the food supply side, non-halal food is also not found, but it still requires some kind
of official certification from the MUI so that it can be a guarantee when this Village is promoted as
Religious Tourism. Things that are still lacking or not in accordance with the concept of religion in Bongo
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Village are in terms of tourist behaviour; it is hoped that in the future, the manager will be able to evaluate
the management of a tourist village if he wants to continue to be promoted as a religious tourism
destination. Managers assisted by local governments must start to organize and improve tourist activities
that are not Sharia and provide all halal tourism needs that can support tourist activities from the arrival to
the return of tourists.

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