WITM and MATTA join forces

(From left) Mohd Khalid, Jeffri and Muzammil posing for a photo during the press conference for the upcoming WITM-MATTA fair.

PETALING JAYA: From this year onwards, the MATTA Fair and the World Islamic Tourism Mart (WITM) will come under one roof, with offers for both travellers and businesses alike.

Jointly named the WITM-MATTA Fair 2013, the Sept 6 to 8 exhibition at Putra World Trade Centre this weekend is expected to be MATTA’s biggest fair yet.

“It is going to be really different this year. The fair will cater to customers and business-to-business prospects as well,” said WITM-MATTA Fair advisor Datuk Mohd Khalid Harun at the Malaysia Airlines Academy yesterday.

Mohd Khalid said the joint fair would give tourism package sellers and buyers an opportunity to mingle with consumers coming for a travel bargain. “It is better to have all the people, sellers and buyers to be at the MATTA Fair, rather than having a separate event, whereby you have limited resources,” he said.

WITM, which focuses on Islamic tourism, was first organised by MATTA last year. More than 1,250 booths are to be set up in eight halls at this year’s WITM-MATTA Fair 2013, occupying an area of 28,000sq m.

Eighteen foreign National Tourism Organisations will also be present at the fair.
WITM will hold an International Conference on Muslim Tourism, Haj and Umrah tomorrow and Thursday prior to the joint fair.

The MATTAKAD will be distributed free to the first 50,000 visitors at the event.
WITM-MATTA Fair chairman Jeffri Sulaiman said the card would allow visitors to collect points which could be redeemed for gifts. He added that the card could also be used for various perks at MATTA-affiliated travel agents after the fair.

Malaysia Airlines System (MAS), as the official airline, will take an entire hall.
MAS regional senior vice-president (Malaysia) Muzammil Moha­mad said the carrier was extending the validity of its flight tickets at the fair from one month to three and they would be available to up to mid-2014. International flight fares from Malaysian airports in West Malaysia would be common-rated, he added.
-thestar online.
http://witm-mattafair.org.my/