08Oct

Sabah tourism receipts expected to hit RM8b

Kota Kinabalu: Tourism receipts for the State are expected to reach RM8 billion this year and will continue to grow in the years ahead if tourists have a safe, comfortable and memorable stay in Sabah. "This will not happen by chance but it requires both public and private sectors to work in sync. We are happy to work closely with the State Government to achieve the aspirations of Sabah," the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (Matta) said. The association also agreed that Sabah has the potential to be a home port in the region for cruise ships and it is for this reason that both the State Government and all the players in the tourism industry should work in unison for the good of the State, country and all Malaysians. Matta President Datuk Tan Kok Liang also acknowledged the need to cap domestic airfares which had adversely impacted travellers during festive seasons, and strategies to bring back long haul tourists from Europe. He said Matta and the Sabah Government under the leadership of Chief Minister Datuk Shafie Apdal had meaningful deliberations on Tuesday on the importance of sound tourism infrastructure, promotions on rural tourism, maintenance on cleanliness of tourism sites such as beaches, safety and security of tourists, high airfares between Sabah and Sarawak and Peninsular Malaysia. "We are very pleased to be assured by Shafie that his government will continue to collaborate with the association for the betterment of our State and country," he stressed. During the deliberation held at the office of the Chief Minister, Tan said the association also invited Shafie to officially launch the forthcoming Matta Fair 2019 scheduled to be held in Kuala Lumpur. In the travel event, he said, Sabah will be the preferred domestic destination. "This will help boost domestic arrivals to the State," Tan said, adding that Matta was delighted that the Chief Minister accepted the invitation. On the potential of Sabah being a home port for cruise ships in the region, Tan said to achieve the desired goal, tourism players and State Government should focus on cruise tourism in their efforts to develop more tourism products. Tan said Sabah is strategically located in the region and sees no reason why the State cannot achieve its ambition. "We need to look into this segment of emerging market which is getting popular among Asians. Sabah has the advantage because the cruise ship(s) using the State as a home port can cover the Philippines, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Korea, Japan and Taiwan. "But to make the proposal a reality, a proper cruise terminal like Port Klang or Penang's Swettenham Pier must be built in Sabah to be the home port. This terminal can be constructed in Sapanggar or as a matter of fact anywhere in the State's west coast," he pointed out. According to Tan, not only having the cruise terminal in Sabah would increase the number of tourist arrivals in the State, the economic spillover for other port-related services such as handling, docking, engineering and refuelling will be good for the State. "There will be business opportunities and jobs for locals," he added. - Nikko Fabian Photo Source: Sabah Tourism   Source: Daily Express
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04Oct

Kota Belud, Kadamaian and Kiulu a focal point for rural tourism

By NOOR ZAFIRA SHAFIE KOTA KINABALU: Kiulu, Kadamaian and Kota Belud will be the focal point for rural tourism in two years’ time after being chosen by Sabah Tourism Board as pioneer districts for rural tourism development. Tourism, Culture and Environment Assistant Minister, Assaffal @ Samsul Kamal P. Alian said that the rural sites have great potential to be promoted as unique, attractive and authentic tourism places and products. He said improvement of services in promoting rural tourism must be continuously enhanced and upgraded. “We must have the relevant knowledge, skills in operating and managing rural tourism, especially in the areas of language/communication, conservation, sustainable and responsible consumption as well as local youth participation in the rural tourism development,” he said to reporters here yesterday after witnessing a MoU signing ceremony between University Malaysia Sabah and Almacrest International College, Kadamaian Tourism Association and Kiulu Association. According to him, Sabahans and industries players should make efforts to offer more diverse products for eco-tourism and nature tourism as well. “It is important that we shift our focus to sustainable tourism development and responsible consumption, as these are vital in making Sabah as global competitive sustainable tourist destination. “Rural tourism consists of rural heritage and activities such as visiting villages, local architecture, hiking, fishing, horse riding, participating in local festivals and tradition as well as territory, like mountains, rivers and any more natural scenery,” he said. Assaffal also stressed that Sabah with interesting geographical landscape have all the important components in developing and promoting tourism. “I believe the local communities can benefit in terms of employment and income generation, and thus will enhance the economic security of the community,” he added. “All these can be prosperous and flourish through rural tourism development,” he added.   Source: New Sabah Times
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03Oct

Sabah can be home port for cruise ships – Matta

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah too has the potential to be a home port in the region for cruise ships, opined Malaysia Association of Tour and Travel Agents (Matta) president Datuk Tan Kok Liang. Therefore the state government and tourism players should also focus on cruise tourism in their efforts to develop more tourism products, he said. Tan told The Borneo Post that Sabah’s advantage is in its strategic location in the region. “We need to look into this segment of emerging market which is getting popular among Asians. Sabah has the advantage because the cruise ship(s) using the state as a home port can cover the Philippines, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Korea, Japan and Taiwan. “But to make the proposal a reality, a proper cruise terminal like Port Klang or Penang’s Swettenham Pier must be built in Sabah to be the home port. This terminal can be constructed in Sepanggar or as a matter of fact anywhere in the state’s west coast,” he pointed out. According to Tan, not only would having the cruise terminal in Sabah increase the number of tourist arrivals in the state, the economic spillover for other port-related services such as handling, docking, engineering and refuelling will be good for the state. “There will be business opportunities and jobs for locals,” he said. Speaking during the opening ceremony of the Matta Fair Penang on Saturday, Tan said the association had proposed that Penang be turned into a home port for cruise ships to cater to the growing cruise market in the region. He urged Matta members to play a significant role to do marketing promotions not only among Malaysians but also tourists from the region. Tan firmly believes that making Penang a home port will create a better option for large cruise ships to call to, rather that docking in other countries such as Singapore and Hong Kong. “The Penang home port stands out from home ports in other countries such as Singapore, as Penang is closer to Thailand, one of the favourite travel destinations in the region,” he said.   Source: Borneo Post Online
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03Oct

Community-based mid-Autumn carnival at Foh Sang

KOTA KINABALU: The Mid-Autumn Carnival at Foh Sang from October 4 to 6 is poised to revitalize the economy of the area and showcase Foh Sang as a happening community. More than 5,000 people, including tourists, are expected to turn up at the three-day carnival. The event is jointly organized by the Kota Kinabalu member of parliament (MP) office, Luyang state assemblyman office, Kota Kinabalu City Hall (DBKK) and Sabah Association of Tour and Travel Agents (Satta). There will be a night market featuring over 60 stalls from October 4 to 6, while the opening ceremony by the Minister of Health and People’s Wellbeing Stephen Wong representing Chief Minister Datuk Seri Panglima Shafie Apdal will be held on October 5. Visitors will be entertained with classic games, cultural shows, singing performances, live band, Tai Chi demonstration and lantern making competition that take will place this Friday. Members of the public also stand a chance to win cash vouchers and air tickets during an interactive session with My Sabah radio deejays from 6pm to 8pm on October 5, and enjoy mooncakes distributed by the organizers at the opening ceremony. Kota Kinabalu member of parliament Chan Foong Hin said the Mid-Autumn Carnival at Foh Sang would be different from the Mid-Autumn Lantern Festival held at Gaya Street last Saturday. “The Gaya Street event was more official with the presence of the Chief Minister. “The Mid-Autumn Carnival at Foh Sang will be more community-based,” he said in a joint press conference with Luyang assemblyman Phoong Jin Zhe, Satta president Datuk Seri Winston Liaw and DBKK Corporate Affairs Department director Syron A. Tunggolou here yesterday. Chan also hoped that the carnival would help spur the economic growth and tourism sector in Kota Kinabalu. Meanwhile, Phoong hoped that the Mid-Autumn Carnival at Foh Sang would become an annual event for locals and tourists to enjoy the celebration. He said the event could transform Foh Sang into a brand to attract Chinese tourists. “My hope is to revitalize and rejuvenate Foh Sang’s economy. “We want to show that Foh Sang can be a happening community.” He also urged participants of the lantern parade at Gaya Street to join the lantern competition at Foh Sang as well. The winner will receive an air ticket. Those who wish to join the lantern making competition can contact Billy Lim at 012-8073203. On the other hand, Liaw believed that some 500 tourists, particularly from China and Korea, would be visiting the carnival. “We have been promoting the event to Chinese and Korean tourists and we expect them to come and join the celebration.” He said the carnival also coincided with the ‘Golden Week’ holiday from September 29 to October 7 in China to celebrate the country’s national day. As such, he believed the carnival would attract quite a number of Chinese tourists. Members of the public are encouraged to carpool or take the e-hailing service Grab to the Mid-Autumn Carnival to reduce traffic congestion. Phoning said Grab would be offering RM5 discount for two rides to and from the carnival for 1,000 users. He said Grab users could enjoy the discount by entering the promo code ‘GRABFOHSANG’. “The promotion will start from 5pm till midnight on October 5. For people living nearby, the ride is likely to be free,” he said. Alternatively, he said drivers could park at Damai and walk over to Foh Sang. Meanwhile, Phoong informed that a partial road closure between the Foh Sang shops would take place on the morning of October 3 and 4 for the purpose of setting up the stage and canopy. He said the street would be fully closed from 5pm on October 4 for the night market and for the entire day on October 5. “The street will also be partially closed on October 6. We will reopen the street to the public as soon as possible, depending on how fast we can dismantle the structures.”   Source: Borneo Post Online
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02Oct

Tourists continue to flow into Sabah

By PAUL MU KOTA KINABALU: Tourist arrivals to Sabah have increased by 5.27 per cent to 111,136 people in the first seven months of this year compared to the same period of last year. Based on records from January to July, a total of 2,221,110 arrivals were registered against 2,109,974 last year. According to Christopher Chan of Borneo Eco Vest Sdn Bhd, the July 2018 tourist arrivals were registered at 329,159, beating the same period last year, by 15,110 or 4.81 per cent. However, there was a slight drop compared to last month’s figure by 22,273 or 6.34 per cent. International arrivals for July were recorded at 123,486 against Malaysian arrivals of 205,673 compared to 109,812 and 204,237 achieved in the corresponding month last year. “This indicates an increase of 13,674 or 12.45 per cent and 1,436 or 0.7 per cent respectively,” said Chan who is also the advisor of Sabah Hotel Association yesterday. The total international arrivals up till July 2018 were 801,919 against 691,784 last year indicating an increase of 110,135 or 15.92 per cent. The total Malaysian arrivals till July 2018 stood at 1,419,191, which is marginally above by 1,001 or 0.07 per cent compared to last year, Chan said. However, he said Southeast Asia arrivals continue to record a drop up till July 2018 with a total of 130,300 against 149,141 for the corresponding period last year, down by 18,841 or 12.63 per cent. Arrivals from Brunei also declined with only 2,065, the lowest to date this year. The total arrivals from Jan till July stood at 30,493 against 47,354 over the same period last year with a big decrease of 16,861 or 35.615 per cent. Meanwhile, the total arrivals for the Northeast Asia up till July 2018 were recorded at 590,157 against 461,301 over the same period in 2017, an increase of 128,856 or 27.93 per cent, he said. As of July 2018, the total arrivals were 93,424 against 74,926 for the corresponding month in 2017 and a total of 77,673 in June 2018. “We are up against the same month last year by 18,498 or 23.8 per cent and last month by 15.751 or 20.28 per cent respectively. China continues to top the arrivals from this region with a total of 358,428 compared to 250,055 for the same period in 2017 indicating an increase of 108,373 or 43.34 per cent. Arrivals for July 2018 were recorded at 58,325 against 41,955 achieved in the same month in 2017 and 45,603 during last month this year. South Korea followed closely from Jan to July 2018 with 191,351 against 163,500 achieved over the same period last year indicating an increase of 27,851 or 17.03 per cent. “Arrivals in July 2018 were recorded at 29,075 compared to 25,052 over the same month last year and 27,076 last month. This indicate an increase of 4,023 or 16.06 per cent over the last year same month and also up against last month by 1,999 or 7.38 per cent,” Chan noted. Taiwan arrivals up till July 2018 were recorded at 30,916 compared to 35,962 over the same period of 2017, dropped by 5,045 or 14.02 per cent from the total arrival of 4,667 while last year was 6,151 declined by 1,484 or 24.13 per cent, but higher than last month figure of 4,333 by 334 or 7.71 per cent, he said. “Arrivals from Japan still show no sign of recovery with a total of 9,461 arrival during the first half of this year compared to 11,784 for the same period of last year, down by 2,323 or 19.71 per cent,” Chan said. For the Oceania market, he said a total of 15,433 were registered compared to 16,686 for the same period last year, declined by 1,253 or 7.51 per cent. Arrivals from Australia was at 13,624 this year compared to 14,583 over the same period last year, down by 941 or 6.45 per cent while New Zealand recorded at 1,791 for the first seven months of 2018 compared to 2,103 for the same period last year, down by 312 or 14.84 per cent. The contributions from the European market almost identical between this year and last year, totaling 41,290 against 42,156 with 866 people margin or 2.05 per cent, he said. “However, the total arrivals in July last year stood at 7,725, the highest to date but still less than China’s only one month total arrivals. “Arrivals from UK and Ireland are the single largest market from Europe comprising almost 50 per cent of the total while the rest of Europe are minor arrivals except for Germany which increased marginally,” Chan commended. The North American market continues to show a positive growth with a total of 13,476 against 11,166 arrivals for the first seven months this year and last year, above by 2,310 or 20.69 per cent. The arrivals from US and Canada respectively increased by 9,981 and 3,495 in 2018 against 7,893 and 3,272 in 2017 or respectively hike by 2,088 (26.45 per cent) and 223 (6.82 per cent), he said. “The overall figures indicated that international arrivals of 801,919 comprises up to 36.10 per cent of the total arrivals to Sabah against Malaysian arrivals of 1,419,191 which is 63.90 per cent out of the total visitors of 2,221,110,” Chan concluded.   Source: New Sabah Times
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