“Malaysia Truly Asia” Campaign Delivers in Tourist Arrivals

Malaysia will continue with its marketing theme of ‘Malaysia Truly Asia’ as it has led to an increased tourists arrivals, tourism receipts and brand awareness for the country.

In revealing this to Travel Weekly Asia, Malaysia Minister Of Tourism And Culture Dato' Seri Mohamed Nazri bin Abdul Aziz said: “We will continue to use the ‘Malaysia, Truly Asia’ branding as it embodies the spirit of racial diversity and unity. This was the very element that made our country unique, and we celebrate that diversity.”

Outlook for the country’s tourism industry is “promising” and the Ministry of Tourism and Culture Malaysia (MOTAC) expects strong growth in tourist arrivals from China due to the extended visa facilitation, more flights and various promotional initiatives by Tourism Malaysia,” added Mohamed Nazri.

ASEAN remains the top source market for Malaysia’s arrivals growth. The region continues to contribute the biggest share of tourist arrivals to Malaysia, with a 75% share of overall tourist arrivals.

Looking ahead in the New Year, the tourism minister said: “The tourism sector is expected to be on the road to recovery in 2017, helped in part by foreign exchange rates, and on the back of a marginal rebound in tourist arrivals in 2016.”

Mohamed Nazri revealed the fall of the Malaysian ringgit, coupled with lower promotional funds, has caused the country to miss its 2016 arrival target of 30.5 million tourists.

The global economic uncertainty, limited air accessibility from long-haul markets, stiff regional competition and safety concerns are other factors contributing to the shortfall, he added.

“Nonetheless, the weak ringgit is making Malaysia more affordable to foreigners and encouraging domestic tourism as Malaysians find it more expensive to travel overseas. This is also backed up by the opening of attractive places to visit such as theme parks and factory outlets like the Design Village Penang.”

To boost arrivals Ministry of Tourism and Culture (MOTAC) has come up with various strategic initiatives namely the Blue Ocean Tourism under the National Blue Ocean Strategy platform that aims to promote Clean Air Tourism, ecotourism, high yield segments (MICE, shopping, wellness and cruise) and filming locations in Malaysia.

“For this year, we are taking the opportunity to leverage on the Visit ASEAN@50 Campaign to promote intra-ASEAN tourism and sports based events in conjunction with the 2017 SEA Games and Para ASEAN in Malaysia,” said Mohamed Nazri.

MOTAC and Tourism Malaysia are also working with various partners in strategic promotions, strengthening smart collaboration with both national and international airlines, focusing on consumer-based travel fairs, intensifying social media involvement in promotional activities, and establishing long-term business networking through the National Blue Ocean Strategy platform.