Sabah Tourism Board, MAB partner to boost Sabah tourism

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KOTA KINABALU: The Sabah Tourism Board (STB) signed a new joint partnership campaign for 2018 with Malaysia Airlines Bhd (MAB) in London to continue boosting arrivals to Sabah and raise the profile of Borneo (Kota Kinabalu) in the United Kingdom (UK).

Sabah Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister, Datuk Masidi Manjun said the partnership would help create even greater opportunities to increase the growing number of tourists and business travellers from the UK and Ireland flying to Sabah.

Next year, MAB London will be conducting a series of trade and consumer activities and campaigns to promote Sabah and Malaysia through Digital Campaign Promotions on the Malaysia Airlines UK/European Union online portals, partnership with Kuoni, and travel trade partnership with key tour operator partners to launch the A350 route.

“The statistics by STB revealed that in 2016, there were a total number of 35,901 arrivals from these key markets, a 7.0 per cent increase from 2015. The overall international arrivals in 2016 recorded more than 1.1 million visitors, a significant increase of 15.4 per cent compared with 2015.

“On Malaysia Airlines, visitors to Kota Kinabalu grew by 57 per cent from January to September 2017 to reach 10,523 arrivals compared with the same period in 2016,” Masidi said in a statement today.

The STB-MAB agreement was signed by Masidi and Malaysia Airlines regional manager UK, Ireland, Europe and North America, Adrian Keating at the World Travel Market London 2017 in ExCel London, yesterday.

Also present were STB Deputy General Manager, Suzaini Sabdin Ghani and STB (UK, Europe and US Market) Assistant Manager, Marketing Daniel Roman.

Meanwhile, Keating said Malaysia Airlines was a brand that is embedded in the culture and diversity of Malaysia and it was delighted to renew its partnership with the STB to showcase all that the region has to offer.

“Whether you want to explore the heights of Mount Kinabalu or relax on a paradise beach, Sabah is the perfect place to start your Malaysian adventure,” he added.

Masidi led the Sabah Tourism delegation at the World Travel Market London which was also attended by Borneo Nature Tours, Borneo Adventures, Shangri La Rasa Ria, Rustic Borneo, and Borneo Sandakan Tours.

World Travel Market London is the leading global event for the travel industry, generating more than £2.8 billion of business contracts between attendees.

Over three days from Nov 6-8, the travel industry comes together as almost 5,000 exhibiting destinations, technology and private sector companies find and network with 51,000 travel professionals, key industry buyers, journalists, digital influencers, students and tourism ministers. — Bernama