Malaysia expects to attract 28m tourists in 2014.

Date: 17 January 2013

Malaysia expects to attract 28m tourists in 2014.

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia expects to attract 28 million tourists next year, in line with the launch of the Visit Malaysia 2014 campaign, said Tourism Minister Dr Ng Yen Yen. She said Malaysia would continue to focus on its key markets to bring in tourists, with emphasis on the Middle East, China and India.

“We would also like to venture into new markets such as Kazakhstan, Brazil, Russia and also the US. In the US, we will focus on areas such as Las Vegas and Honolulu,” she told reporters at a briefing yesterday on the latest update on the launch of the Visit Malaysia 2014 promotional campaign.

Ng said better connectivity between Malaysia and several areas will further enhance tourist inflow.

According to Ng, Honolulu receives about nine million tourists every year, as such Malaysia should initiate a step forward to attract more potential tourists.

“We are enhancing our chartered flights facilities as last year we received about 400 chartered flights from all over the world,” she said.

The ministry is also working with Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd to translate transit passengers to overnight passengers.

The Visit Malaysia 2014 promotional campaign will kick off at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium from Jan 18 to Jan 20 with strong support from the private sector. Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak is scheduled to officiate at the campaign on Jan 19. He is also expected to announce the 2012 tourism data.

By Kamalavacini Ramanathan

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