Domestic tourism on rise

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KOTA KINABALU: A recent survey conducted by LivingSocial found that domestic tourism is on the rise with close to 60 per cent of Malaysians voting Sabah, Sarawak and Langkawi as the ideal local escape destinations in a recent survey.

More than 40 per cent of respondents chose Taiwan, Korea and Japan for Asian destinations while Europe received the highest vote followed by Australia for international destinations.

“Malaysia has a great deal to offer tourists, and we are delighted that the unique Malaysian travel experiences offered by LivingSocial are very popular among our subscribers,” LivingSocial Malaysia marketing director Irene Foo said in a statement yesterday.

The survey was conducted among 2,000 respondents across four Malaysian states.

She said the survey also revealed that a majority of people planned their travels at least six months ahead, and 98 per cent of the people who travel do it for leisure, 35 per cent search for family-oriented holidays, while 31 per cent look for romantic breakaways.

The survey found that 55 per cent buy travel packages from online group buying sites while 44 per cent buy from online travel agencies.

“More and more Malaysians are buying travel packages online and LivingSocial is committed to providing the best travel deals and experiences,” Foo added.