KUCHING: Tourism and Heritage Minister Datuk Amar Abang Johari Tun Openg yesterday revealed a new masterplan to lure more European tourists to the state.
Abang Johari, who is also the Housing and Urban Development Minister, said the plan is expected to spur further growth for the state tourism industry.
“I have an exciting new idea for the tourism sector but it’s still in early discussion,” he said, indicating that the plan would involve better fl ight connectivity.
“The federal government and airline companies are involved in the discussion. What I can say is that the state is considering proposals for greater fl ight connectivity from destinations in Europe and Australaisia,” he told reporters at the ‘Jom Heboh’ carnival.
He declined to reveal further details, saying an announcement would be made at the right time.
According to Abang Johari, Sarawak has a lot of tourist spots to attract western visitors.
“More importantly, we still have pristine nature which is what most tourists are looking for. It is important for us to promote what we have internationally.”
He pointed out that several major tourism events such as the Rainforest World Music Festival, Miri International Jazz Festival, Pesta Benak and the Regatta had to be packaged creatively and promoted to a bigger audience.
Abang Johari also said there were many good hotels in the state to meet the demand for accomodation during the peak season.
On the soon-to-be completed Kuching Sentral project to serve as a central hub for land transport in Kuching city, he said the location is safe and not at the end of the airport runaway as some quarters had claimed.
The minister, answering questions on safety issues involving the transport terminal, said the Civil Aviation had no issue because the building is not sited at the end of the aerodrome.
“There is no danger as it’s in a safe area. The project is actually part of Kota Sentosa development.
“He said completion of the project, expected next year, would be in time for a study to be carried out by the Focus Result Delivery (FRD) lab on the possibility of connecting the central hub to suburb hub. Earlier, Abang Johari, in an interview with TV3, suggested Jom Heboh be included in the state tourism calendar.
“It’s up to the Media Prima management but for the event to be listed in the tourism calendar, the state government will need to be informed a year earlier,” he said.
He also suggested the event to be held in other major centres in the state.