Malaysia moves to attract tourists from neighbouring countries

Tourists in Malaysia (Photo: themalaysianreserve.com)

Kuala Lumpur (VNA) – The Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture of Malaysia Nancy Shukri expects the reopening of Malaysia’s tourism industry to be sustained by tourists from neighbouring countries.

The arrival of international tourists will gradually grow in 2022 from neighbouring countries, followed by regional Southeast Asian countries and from the medium and long haul market, she remarked during the launch of Tourism Malaysia’s Strategic and Marketing Plan for 2022-2026 held on March 30.

The Malaysian minister added that the widespread vaccination rollout, lifting of travel restrictions, standard coordination and clearer information on travel protocols will speed up the recovery of international tourism.

The Malaysian Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry has devised specific plans for respective neighbouring countries so as to realise a target of two million international tourist arrivals and 8.6 billion MYR (over 2 billion USD) of tourist receipts this year.

The tourism sector will continue to promote Malaysia as a family-oriented shopping destination for tourists from Brunei.

It will also maintain Singapore’s position as the top contributor of tourist arrivals and aim to make Malaysia a top relaxing holiday for Indonesian travellers.

Moreover, travel agents will be exploring the prospects of niche products to be promoted to tourists in the Philippines as well as encourage Thai tourists to extend their stay here.

The launch of the plan is in tandem with the country’s international border reopening from April 1 where it will focus on promoting domestic tourism and recovering international travel./.