Reviving the Forgotten: Malang's Mask Village

Once upon a time, a government program called Desaku Menanti relocated homeless residents to create a special village – the Mask Tourism Village in Malang. The idea was to showcase the unique Malangan Mask cultural heritage, and at first, it drew many curious visitors. However, the excitement didn't last long. Over time, the village became deserted, with no visitors coming by. This story digs into the strategies behind developing this cultural tourism village and what went wrong. We'll start by looking at how the village was supposed to use Malangan Masks to attract tourists. Researchers used a mix of methods to find out what happened. First, they did a qualitative analysis using the SWOT method, looking at the village's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Then, they surveyed tourists to understand their preferences for cultural tourism villages.

The results showed that the village needs to go deeper into its cultural roots, improve its facilities, and manage tourism better, with the community's active participation. Tourists suggested adding more cultural attractions and preserving the traditional look of the village, with nature-friendly accommodation like villas. So, what can we learn from this? Perhaps, the key is not just to create a village with a cultural theme, but to truly live and breathe the culture, involve the community, and keep improving to stay relevant.

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