Floating kelong tourism in Bintan is ready to welcome tourists
The manager of the floating kelong tourist attraction in the waters of Bintan Regency, Riau Islands Province (Kepri), is ready to welcome the arrival of tourists during the holiday season.
A manager of the Bintan Nemo floating kelong named Karno, said that he is currently busy cleaning up starting from cleaning accommodation rooms and maintaining snorkeling, diving and kayak equipment for visitors to enjoy.
“We ensure that the facilities at the Bintan Nemo floating kelong are truly safe and comfortable for visitors to use,” said Karno in Bintan.
He said that in the week leading up to Eid, many prospective visitors had booked holidays to the Bintan Nemo floating kelong.
He predicts that visitors will start to flock to holiday, which will be dominated by domestic tourists, such as Batam, Tanjungpinang or Bintan residents themselves who have long migrated outside the area, then returning home to my hometown.
“Because of the atmosphere, local tourists are more dominant. On normal days, quite a lot of foreign tourists come to enjoy the natural charm of the sea in Bintan,” he said.
Meanwhile, Head of the Bintan Tourism and Culture Service, Arif Sumarsono, said that currently more than 30 fishermen in the area are using the floating kelong as a tourist attraction.
Kelong apung is a fishing tool used by traditional fishermen for generations which is built above the sea from the shoreline. The floating kelong is unique because it has a floor made of planks and wood, which is equipped with a kitchen and rooms.
“Floating kelongs with various facilities for tourists have actually been around, but not many. Now tens of fishermen are starting to engage in this business as a promising new source of income,” he said in Bintan.
Bintan Tourism and Culture Department will hold a tourism festival on a floating kelong during the north wind season to attract visits from domestic tourists and foreign tourists.
During the north wind season, he said, sea waves are high and strong winds so fishermen don’t go to sea, as a result hundreds of floating kelongs don’t sail so fishermen don’t earn an income.
Meanwhile, empowering floating kelongs on the shoreline for tourism activities can increase tourist visits and have a positive impact on micro, small and medium enterprises.
“On the floating kelong, MSMEs can sell, and it can also be used as an arts performance,” said Arif.
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