The Malaysian Insight

LOCAL companies are banking on Sabah’s paradise islands and sandy beaches to revive its tourism industry as interstate travel has resumed.

Industry players said they initially took a wait-and see-approach before going all out to promote tourism packages.

Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (Matta) Sabah chapter office manager Kennedy Fung said there were aggressive promotions at the Matta Fair held over the weekend.

Tour agents also offered discounts of up to 50% on packages from now to March next year.

Fung is confident that tourists will choose Sabah because of its islands and tourist attractions, as well as the receding Covid-19 epidemic.

However, the shortage of flights remains a problem.

“Matta has contacted Malaysia Airlines, with hopes that they will increase the number of flights between East Malaysia and West Malaysia, which will help the industry promote tourism.”

Fung told The Malaysian Insight that the Sabah tourism package included air tickets, accommodation and meals.

He added that the package was now more competitive as four-star and five-star hotels were offering lower prices.

He said small tour groups were ideal to ensure that tourists always complied with Covid-19 standard operating procedures (SOP).

“Christmas and New Year are coming. Tourists will choose to travel. As the epidemic remains uncertain, we decided to extend the packages until March,” he said.

The tourism sector is on course to rebound after many companies closed without renewing their travel licences during the pandemic.

However, some of them are renewing their licences now as interstate travel is allowed, he said.

“Sabah has beautiful islands and attractions. We hope to reopen the country to welcome foreign tourists. Travel agencies are promoting certain islands to the public.

“We will ensure that tourists will abide by the SOP. We will prepare our own kits for Covid-19 screening, but we hope the government can provide subsidies for more self-test kits,” he said.

Fung also pointed out that Sarawak has seen a surge in cases despite strict prevention measures.

The government had promoted 2020 as Visit Malaysia Year. However, the Covid-19 pandemic and the movement curbs all but destroyed the campaign.

As a result, the tourism and aviation industry suffered major setbacks, including tourists demanding refunds from travel agencies and airlines for cancellations.

Industry still in fear

Malaysian Chinese Tourism Association (MCTA) president Paul Paw said, although the industry has seen a ray of hope, it still has to tread carefully as the situation remains uncertain.

He said there was no assurance the government would not enforce movement curbs once again if cases surge.

“The prospects for the tourism industry are still very hazy. We could once again see an interstate travel ban.”

He said tourist attractions on the peninsula were limited and tourists would get the same feeling of travelling abroad when they fly to East Malaysia.

Paw added that the industry was still in fear after seeing a high volume of cancellations last year. They are also worried that there could be further delays due to new Covid-19 cases.

“Last year, many people booked tours to East Malaysia, but then there were the cancellations refunds.

“We had already given the deposit to the airlines and hotels. No matter how much we explained, the guests refused to budge.

“Now, we want to promote East Malaysia tourism packages. We want to do it but we are afraid because of the unstable situation in Sabah and Sarawak.

“We will maintain a wait-and-see attitude. We will definitely promote East Malaysia tourism. Currently the situation in West Malaysia is relatively stable, so we should promote that first,” he said.

He said West Malaysia also has beautiful islands on the east coast, such as Redang and Tioman. Island packages in the Peninsula are also selling well and the government will be giving tax exemptions for tourism, which is well accepted.

“East Malaysia has better tourism spots than West Malaysia, it is more adventurous, and the culture is also rich. International tourists like that.

“We definitely do not want to relive last year. Customers kept demanding refunds, which cost tour agents hundreds of thousands of ringgit.

“Airlines have not refunded the money. From last year to mid-2021, at least 80% of the travel agencies were temporarily closed,” he said.

Tong Yan Travel and Tour Sdn Bhd managing director Albert Tan said the flights to East Malaysia are expensive.

Although the government has negotiated with airlines to increase flights and seats, Covid-19 cases are still high, he added.

“We hope to wait for the epidemic to slow down before promoting tourism in East Malaysia.” – November 22, 2021.