China is tops for holidays

KUALA LUMPUR: Getaways to China are selling like hot cakes at the “The Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) Fair March 2013”.

MATTA Fair March 2013 organising chairman Jeffri Sulaiman said, based on their Buyers' Contest survey, many visitors had purchased travel packages to China (50), Thailand (34), United Kingdom (22) and Japan (17). “As for domestic destinations, many visitors bought travel packages to Kuala Lumpur and Selangor.” However, he said that the participation of the survey was voluntary and believed that the figures were much higher.

MATTA president Datuk Mohd Khalid Harun said, in terms of country, Malaysia topped the choice of destination when purchasing the packages. “Some 103 packages have been bought to travel within Malaysia, which shows domestic tourism is still strong,” he said.

Attention-grabbing: Models wearing traditional costumes during the MATTA fair at PWTC, Kuala Lumpur.

KSK Travels Sdn Bhd tour division manager Ken Lai said that they had sold more than 50 tour packages to China, especially to YangTze River, Korean and other Asian countries since Friday. He said most Malaysians chose to go there during the Spring season between March to May.

“There were also customers who would go for winter packages as they love the cold weather and can escape the country's hot climate.”

Japan National Tourism Organisation Singapore Office executive director Motonari Adachi said the most sought-after destinations in Japan were Hokkaido, Gifu, Tokyo and Osaka. “Malaysians also love to experience the lavender bloom season between June and July and cherry blossoms between April and May,” he said.

-thestar online.