August 20, 2025 | 04:38 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Pacu Jalur festival in Kuantan Singingi officially opens today, August 20, 2025, and will last until August 24. This year's festival is livelier than the ones before, thanks to the viral "aura farming" social media trend that has tourists flocking to Riau to witness the boat race.
The Chair of the Regional Executive Board of the Association of Indonesian Travel Agents (Astindo) Riau, Harpina Diansari, said tourists came from within the country and overseas. According to her observation, the number of visitors to the Pacu Jalur festival this year doubled that of the previous years.
"I asked all Astindo members, and they're all busy handling jobs," she said during a dinner event with American rapper Melly Mike in Jakarta on Tuesday. "It's extraordinary, doubled (compared to previous years)."
She also mentioned that the rental vehicles and hotels in Kuantan Singingi are unable to accommodate all the incoming tourists, since the regency does not have many hotels, especially star-rated ones. As a result, Astindo members are struggling to find accommodations for guests.
As an alternative, she offered her guests to stay in Pekanbaru, then depart early in the morning to Kuantan Singingi to watch Pacu Jalur, and return in the evening. The journey from Pekanbaru to Kuantan Singingi takes four to five hours by rental vehicle. "They don't mind, as long as they can watch the Pacu Jalur," she said.
Malaysian and Singaporean Tourists
Harpina does not yet have readily available data on the origin of most tourists, but she said so far the majority come from Malaysia and Singapore. Both countries have direct flights to Pekanbaru. From Kuala Lumpur alone, there are four to five direct flights in a day with a duration of less than two hours.
Besides the proximity, Harpina mentioned that the high interest from Malaysian and Singaporean tourists is due to the shared historical similarities. "Historically, some Malay countries have a connection with the Sultanate of Siak Sri Indrapura," she said.
She hopes that this year's Pacu Jalur festival will bring improvements to Kuantan Singingi tourism. The viral moment has brought developments in the region, with new hotels being built and roads repaired. "Hopefully, this will continue," she said.
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