PUTRAJAYA: Tourism Malaysia will be banking on its domestic market to generate more traction in its Visit Malaysia 2020 (VM2020) campaign efforts, which is facing setbacks in the wake of global health concerns following the Covid-19 infection.
Tourism Malaysia director-general Datuk Musa Yusof said this move, based on statistics that showed 86 per cent of hotel receipts were from Malaysians themselves, will boost the country’s tourism revenue further.
In fact, he added, over RM70 billion were spent by local tourists last year, mainly on accommodation and shopping, entertainment and sporting activities.
Tourism Malaysia will now focus on two domestic tourism categories: family holidays and company trips, Musa said.
“The domestic tourism industry is an important one as it is owned and generated by Malaysians, where large or small families spend on visiting local places and attractions, especially during the school and festive holidays.
“Besides this, we encourage companies to organise team building, family day or even training sessions for their employees at hotels that have the necessary facilities,” he said in an exclusive interview with Bernama recently.
Based on numbers, Musa said Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Johor and Penang were the main tourist generating states with its people forming the group that travels out the most.
On the other hand, Melaka, Kelantan, Terengganu, Sabah and Sarawak were considered major tourist receiving states, he added.
Based on these figures and current developments, Musa urged local tourism players to offer interesting and reasonable holiday packages to ensure VM2020’s success, in the process helping to boost the country’s tourism industry. — Bernama