26Feb

Sabah, Malaysia’s favourite destination at Matta Fair

KUALA LUMPUR: Sabah will be the designated as ‘Malaysia’s Favourite Destination’ this year at the MATTA Fair which will be held 15 – 17 March at Kuala Lumpur, as announced at a press conference today. “Sabah Tourism Board (STB) will be leading its delegation of 30 co-exhibitors comprising of 25 tour operators, two dive operators, two hotels and one hotel association,” said Chairman of the Board, Ken Pan who was present at the press conference. As part of the highlight as Malaysia’s Favourite Destination, STB will be introducing ‘Cuti-Cuti Tawau’ to emphasize tourism in the East Coast of Sabah and further promote the State beyond the already popular Kota Kinabalu in the West Coast. The Sabah Chief Minister is expected to officiate MATTA Fair on 16th March. Pan stated that Sabah’s East Coast, mainly the towns of Tawau, Semporna, Lahad Datu, and Sandakan have many unique nature-based attractions as well as a historical heritage that is not found in the West Coast. There is also an island off Lahad Datu that is being promoted as the easternmost point of Malaysia where the ‘first sunrise’ of Malaysia can be witnessed, the STB Chairman added again. STB has been participating in the MATTA Fair for more than a decade as the platform to reach out to the consumers in the Klang Valley and surrounding States. The Sabah Cultural Board will be showcasing rarely seen cultural performance during the fair. Consumers can check STB’s social media for special vouchers on Sabah packages to be redeemed during the Fair. Source: Borneo Post Online
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25Feb

Charting new tourism directions

KOTA KINABALU: The State Government will set new strategic directions and provide an enabling environment for industry players to help drive tourism growth in the State. Deputy Chief Minister cum State Tourism Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Christina Liew (pic) said for 2019 the government was targeting a diverse range of tourists in order to balance the increasing number of Chinese tourists to the State. “As such she said the government was also looking at increasing tourists from Asean countries.   “With resilience innovation, product quality and excellent service standards, the state Tourism industry will continue to drive the nation forward, thus making the state a preferred travel destination. “I believe we can come together to make tourism the best in the state and in the country. The State Government will stand fully behind every effort. Let us work hard to ensure fruitful outcomes,” she said, adding her Ministry and State Tourism Board have a blueprint to achieve this. “In addition to tourists coming from China which we intend to open up maybe two or three new market destinations from China, we decide to expand our route to Europe which is why we are going to ITB Berlin 2019 travel trade show in March. “It’s the gateway to Europe and we would like to have more European tourists and also open up markets in Australia, New Zealand, USA, Japan and Korea.  All these are important we believe in balanced tourism promotion. Hopefully we are able to get more tourist arrivals to the state than last year. “We will be visiting these countries and doing promotions to sell Sabah as a destination to all these tourism players in Europe.” On the expected number of European visitors coming to the State, Liew said she would know how to assess the number after going to Berlin. “Sabah has always been an attractive place for Europe because of what we can offer. We have elephants and orang utans, clean rivers and clean air, nice seafood and unique culture.   “So Sabah is a nice place for Europeans. This will be my first time as the State Tourism Minister to go to Europe to do the promotion so I would be able to assess it then. “With the help of Matta and Malaysian Tourism Board, I am very sure we would be able to push for the European Tourist market. We have set our target but we are striving to push it higher.” She said this to reporters at the B2B session between Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (Matta) Sabah Chapter and 40 Asean Tour Operators at a hotel in Kota Kinabalu on Saturday. Meanwhile Matta President Datuk KL Tan when asked about his comment that only six percent of tourists from Asean countries that come to Sabah with the remainder more towards Kuala Lumpur in the Peninsular, he said traditionally the Sabah market was from China, South Korea and domestic tourism. So Asean market is something that the State can tap into. “For tourists from Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia going to  Kuala Lumpur is popular but today we want a breakthrough for Sabah because of our attractions of diving, trekking and mountain climbing, our food, beaches and clean air so we should be able to attract them. “With air connectivity from Thailand, Philippines, Singapore, Brunei  we should be able to tap a bigger share of the market  together with the assistance of the State Tourism Board and Tourism Malaysia. “These Asean countries generally tend to have a much bigger population than Malaysia. So we just need a small percentage of them.”   He said Matta Sabah Chapter was fully hosting the 40 tour agents delegates from the Asean countries. “This includes their air transport, accommodation and ground handling in order that they come to Sabah as they have been selling very well for Malaysia generally.” Meanwhile on the B2B event itself, Liew  said it was the first time an Asean tourism conference was  held in the state. “All this while it was held in Kuala Lumpur, but this year was the first time it was held in the state so that we can promote Sabah to them,” Liew said adding that she was sure the delegates would be able to understand what the state had to offer. “We hope today’s B2B session  will be able to produce results. We have spent some money on this as an investment but we believe that there will be a good result from it.” Sabah recorded 1.36 million international arrivals and 2.52 million domestic arrivals which increased by 10.2 percent and 2.8 percent respectively last year.  - Neil Chan Source: Daily Express
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25Feb

Sabah to woo more tourists from Asean countries

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah is banking on arrivals from Asean countries to boost its tourism industry. Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (Matta) president Datuk Tan Kok Liang said to date, the state only has six per cent of tourist arrivals from Southeast Asian nations, compared to 70 per cent heading to Kuala Lumpur and other parts of peninsula Malaysia. “Sabah has loads of attractions, from food, dive sites, air, wildlife and culture, which it markets to travellers from China, South Korea and within Malaysia. “The state wants a breakthrough from Asean countries which have much bigger population than Sabah. “We should be able to do better for the state with direct flights connectivity and assistance from Sabah Tourism Board and Tourism Malaysia,” he said after launching the inaugural B2B session between Matta Sabah chapter members and Asean tour operators here. Present were Sabah Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Christina Liew and Tourism Malaysia deputy director-general (promotion) Datuk Mohmed Razip Hasan. Tan added that despite similarities in terms of tourism products within Asean countries, Sabah has its own niches that could cater to the needs of different tourists. Earlier in his speech, he said this year, Matta would be representing Malaysia at the International Tourism Bourse Berlin in Germany next month by showcasing 28 travel and tour companies and hoteliers. “Our participation at ITB Berlin will allow us to showcase Malaysia’s products especially Sabah Tourism to more than 10,000 tourism agencies from over 180 countries. “Matta will also be introducing attractive and fresh itineraries for tour packages to encourage more tourists from Germany and Europe to visit Malaysia,” he said, adding that Western countries have traditionally been contributing to tourism industry thus it is worthy to continue tapping the said market. Meanwhile, Liew, who is also deputy chief minister said the state government would set up a new strategic direction and provide an enabling environment for industry players to help drive tourism growth. “We are targeting a diverse range of tourists as we want to balance the number, not only increasing the number of Chinese tourists, but also tourists from Asean and European countries. “Sabah had recorded 1.36 million international arrivals and 2.52 million domestic arrivals. We are on the right track to achieve our target of 4 million tourist arrivals in 2019.” she added. Source: New Straits Times
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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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