Tourism Malaysia Promotes VMY 2014 In Five South Asian Cities

COLOMBO, 10 March 2014: As part of its efforts to raise awareness on the celebration of Visit Malaysia Year (VMY) 2014 globally, Tourism Malaysia is embarking on a sales mission to India and Sri Lanka, beginning today until 20 March.

The Minister of Tourism and Culture Malaysia Dato’ Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz is scheduled to lead the Malaysian delegation to Mumbai and New Delhi from 17 to 20 March. He will be joined by the Director General of Tourism Malaysia Dato’ Mirza Mohammad Taiyab.

Prior to that, Tourism Malaysia’s Deputy Director General (Planning) Dato’ Azizan Noordin is leading the delegation to Colombo, Kochi and Bangalore, beginning today until 16 March. The sales mission is expected to capture a larger share of the South Asian market, besides to promote the VMY 2014 campaign.

Throughout the sales mission, Tourism Malaysia will organise a travel mart in every city to provide a platform for the travel trade players to meet and network. It also aims to showcase Malaysia’s diverse tourism offerings and highlight the scope for collaboration between travel agents in Malaysia and India, as well as Sri Lanka.       

In addition, a trade evening will also be organised in each city to promote VMY 2014 with cultural performance and fashion show. The dinner also serves as a token of appreciation to the local tourism fraternity and media for their support and commitment in promoting Malaysia as a preferred destination for both leisure and business. Besides that, media interviews, press conferences, and meetings with tour operators will also be held. The Malaysian delegation comprises a total of 86 participants from 44 organisations representing the local travel trade, which include state tourism bodies.

The sales mission also aims to strengthen the presence of Malaysia in the South Asian market, and to keep the Indian and Sri Lankan’s travel trade, media and corporate sector updated on the current issues and tourism development in Malaysia, especially during the VMY 2014 campaign.

India has always been an important market for Malaysia. In 2013, a total of 650,989 Indian travellers visited Malaysia, maintaining its position as the sixth top tourist generating market to the country. Tourist arrivals from Sri Lanka was 64,051 in 2013, which was an increase of 2.0% against 62,821 tourists in 2012.

Last year, the South Asian region contributed 1.08 million tourists to Malaysia’s total arrivals, signifying an increase of 1.9% compared to the previous year.

Malaysia’s tourism sector continued to be a major money-maker for the country in 2013. Tourist receipts were RM65.44 billion, surpassing the initial target of RM65 billion. It was an increase of 8.1% from RM60.56 billion in 2012. Tourist arrivals grew by 2.7% to 25.7 million compared to 25 million in 2012.
-Tourism Malaysia.