Tourism Malaysia's Promotion Efforts Gather Pace In India To Achieve 33 Pct Growth In Arrivals

By Shakir Husain

NEW DELHI, Feb 24 (Bernama) -- Tourism Malaysia's promotion efforts are gathering pace in India in conjunction with the ongoing Visit Malaysia 2026 (VM2026) global campaign, as Malaysia looks to increase Indian arrivals by 33 per cent.

India has emerged as an important source market following Malaysia's visa-free policy for travellers from the South Asian country, and the growth trend is expected to continue, Tourism Malaysia officials said in New Delhi on Tuesday.

The number of Indian visitors to Malaysia last year grew by 14.6 per cent to about 1.5 million and this year this could surpass two million.

The growth in tourists from India is supported by 240 weekly flights connecting Malaysia to major Indian cities, Tourism Malaysia senior director Nuwal Fadhilah Ku Azmi said at a press conference on the eve of the three-day South Asia Travel and Tourism Exchange (SATTE) exhibition.

Fifty-five Malaysian tourism industry players, including hotels, travel agencies and state tourism agencies, are participating in the Feb 25 to 27 tourism fair.

Highlighting the trends, she said many Indian visitors travel to Malaysia at the last minute due to visa-free entry and a growing number of people are exploring destinations beyond Kuala Lumpur.

With its significantly lower costs of hosting events, Malaysia is working to position itself as a destination for Indian weddings and business events, Nuwal said.

Malaysian High Commissioner to India Datuk Muzafar Shah Mustafa, director of the Tourism Malaysia New Delhi office Ahmad Johanif Mohd Ali, and Tourism Malaysia chairman Datuk Manoharan Periasamy also addressed the media event.

Manoharan said Malaysia's calendar of events this year features more than 300 festivals and activities, and the agency is keen to make Indian travellers familiar with them.

Tourism Malaysia earlier this month participated in the Outbound Travel Mart (OTM) exhibition in Mumbai and organised road shows in Visakhapatnam, Coimbatore and Bengaluru in southern India from Feb 5 to 14 to strengthen its engagement with the travel industry.

-- BERNAMA