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At a hotel in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, a tourist follows a tour package along the Mekong River. Various choices are available, want to ride bicycles, along the river channel, and both are combined with cooking with residents, stop by brick makers, coconut leaf mats, and eat with the villagers.

For those of us who were born and raised in the village, there is no special tour package like that. In various districts in Aceh, the river channel can be found, as well as the craftsmen of bricks or mats, both from pandan leaves and mensiang (Acehnese call them bak ngom).

But for tourists, especially from Europe, or Japan and South Korea, such a scene is really interesting. Imagine they could explore the exotic Krueng Arakundo, with all the wildness that exists. Tourists can see the wildness of monkeys while searching Arakundo, hear the chirping of birds while breathing pollution-free air. For foreign tourists, such an atmosphere is truly luxurious.

Other rivers can also be cultivated while campaigning for river water hygiene that can be used for various needs: drinking water sources or the needs of rice fields for residents. One river course used for natural tourism packages, will have a broad impact on the economic growth of the surrounding community. When tourism grows, various business opportunities will accompany it and become a source of income for the community.

Data from the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), November 2016, there were 956 million people traveling in the January - September 2016 period or a 4 percent increase in the previous period. The growth in the number of tourists which tends to increase every year is certainly an opportunity for the community.

It must be admitted that it is not easy to build tourism in Aceh. The tourism business is very complex, not only related to natural beauty, but also infrastructure, community preparedness, cultural clashes, and religious clashes. It has often happened, some tourist locations are closed because it is considered to be a dirty location. This condition makes certain community groups difficult to erase the stigma of tourism which is always related to pervert.

However, all the challenges above can be resolved in the long run if the government has, the business world, and the community has a vision of halal tourism that is indeed being developed. The results cannot be seen in one or two years, but in the long term. []

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Menyulap Alur Sungai Jadi Destinasi Wisata

Di sebuah hotel di Kota Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam, seorang wisatawan mengikuti paket wisata menyusuri Sungai Mekong. Berbagai pilihan tersedia, mau bersepeda, menyusuri alur sungai, dan keduanya dikombinasikan dengan memasak bersama warga, mampir di perajin batu bata, perajin tikar dari daun kelapa, dan makan bersama warga desa.

Bagi kita yang lahir dan besar di kampung, tidak ada istimewanya paket wisata seperti itu. Di berbagai kabupaten di Aceh, alur sungai bisa ditemukan, demikian juga perajin batu bata atau tikar, baik dari daun pandan maupun mensiang (orang Aceh menyebutnya bak ngom).

Tapi bagi wisatawan, apalagi dari Eropa, atau Jepang dan Korea Selatan, pemandangan seperti itu sungguh menarik. Bayangkan mereka bisa menelusuri Krueng Arakundo yang eksotis, dengan segala keliaran alam yang ada. Wisatawan bisa melihat keliaran monyet saat menelusuri Arakundo, mendengar kicauan burung sambil menghirup udara yang bebas polusi. Bagi wisatawan mancanegara, suasana seperti itu sungguhlah mewah.

Alur sungai lainnya juga bisa digarap sambil mengkampanyekan kebersihan air sungai yang bisa digunakan untuk berbagai kebutuhan: sumber air minum atau kebutuhan lahan persawahan warga. Satu alur sungai saja dimanfaatkan untuk paket wisata alam, akan memberikan dampak luas bagi pertumbuhan perekonomian masyarakat sekitar. Ketika wisata tumbuh, berbagai peluang bisnis akan menyertainya dan menjadi sumber pemasukan bagi masyarakat.

Data Organisasi Pariwisata Dunia PBB (UNWTO), November 2016, ada 956 juta orang berwisata pada periode Januari – September 2016 atau meningkat 4 persen periode sebelumnya. Pertumbuhan jumlah wisatawan yang cenderung meningkat setiap tahun tentunya menjadi peluang bagi masyarakat.

Harus diakui tidak mudah membangun pariwisata di Aceh. Bisnis pariwisata sangat kompleks, tidak semata berkaitan dengan keindahan alam, tetapi juga infrastruktur, kesiapan masyarakat, benturan budaya, dan benturan reliji. Sudah sering terjadi, beberapa lokasi wisata ditutup karena dianggap menjadi lokasi mesum. Kondisi ini membuat kelompok masyarakat tertentu susah menghapus stigma wisata selalu berkaitan dengan mesum.

Namun, semua tantangan di atas bisa diselesaikan dalam jangka panjang jika pemerintah memiliki, dunia usaha, dan masyarakat memiliki satu visi tentang pariwisata halal yang memang sedang dikembangkan. Hasilnya tidak bisa dilihat dalam satu atau dua tahun, tetapi dalam jangka panjang.[]

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