Volume IV: Society, Culture, and Local Ecological Wisdom

Managing Islamic Historical Sites as Cultural Tourism Assets in ASEAN Cities: Bandung, Penang, and Bangkok

  • Abdul Kholiq Zahron UIN Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung, Indonesia

Keywords

Islamic historical sites; cultural tourism; heritage management; Islamic tourism; mosques; Bandung; Penang; Bangkok; ASEAN.

Abstract

This study examines the management of Islamic historical sites as cultural tourism assets in three ASEAN cities—Bandung, Penang, and Bangkok—with a particular focus on their historic mosques. Employing a qualitative, library-based and comparative method grounded in the literature on cultural heritage tourism and Islamic tourism, the research analyses how these sites function simultaneously as living places of worship and as heritage destinations. The three cases reveal distinct trajectories: Bandung’s Grand Mosque (Masjid Raya/Agung, est. 1812) anchors the colonial-era city square and a Sundanese-Islamic civic identity; Penang’s Kapitan Keling Mosque, founded around 1801 by the Tamil-Muslim Chulia community, sits within the George Town UNESCO World Heritage Site and its celebrated “Street of Harmony”; and Bangkok’s historic mosques—such as the Ayutthaya-era Ton Son, the Thai-styled Bang Luang (Kudi Khao), and the Haroon Mosque—reflect the multi- ethnic origins of the capital’s Muslim minority. The comparative analysis argues that sustainable management requires balancing conservation and authenticity with visitation, embedding community and waqf-based stewardship, and respecting the sacred function of active mosques. Managed well, these sites can become assets for the socio-cultural integration envisioned by the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community and exemplars of inter- religious coexistence, rather than mere commodities. This article contributes to the discourse on Islam in the Malay world and on heritage tourism governance in Southeast Asia.

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