mass tourism in malaysia

Travel, Tourism & Hospitality

Tourism in Malaysia - statistics & facts

Slow but steady recovery, visit malaysia 2026, key insights.

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GDP direct contribution from tourism Malaysia 2013-2022

Tourism receipts value Malaysia 2014-2023

Tourist arrivals to Malaysia 2014-2023

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• Accommodation in Malaysia
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• Basic Statistic Value of international tourism spending APAC 2022, by country
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Value of international tourism spending APAC 2022, by country

Value of international tourism expenditure in the Asia-Pacific region in 2022, by country or territory (in billion U.S. dollars)

Gross domestic product direct contribution from tourism in Malaysia from 2013 to 2022 (in billion Malaysian ringgit)

Tourism industry direct contribution as share of GDP Malaysia 2013-2022

Direct contribution of the tourism industry as a share of the gross domestic product (GDP) in Malaysia from 2013 to 2022

Tourist arrival growth in Malaysia 2013-2022

Year on year growth of tourist arrivals to Malaysia from 2013 to 2022

Inbound tourism

• Premium Statistic Tourist arrivals to Malaysia 2014-2023
• Premium Statistic Number of tourist arrivals in Malaysia 2022, by country of residence
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Tourist arrivals to Malaysia from 2014 to 2023 (in millions)

Number of tourist arrivals in Malaysia 2022, by country of residence

Number of tourist arrivals in Malaysia in 2022, by country of residence (in 1,000s)

Inbound tourism expenditure of visitors in Malaysia 2015 to 2022

Inbound tourism expenditure of visitors in Malaysia from 2015 to 2022 (in billion Malaysian ringgit)

Inbound tourism expenditure of visitors in Malaysia 2022, by product

Inbound tourism expenditure of visitors in Malaysia in 2022, by product (in billion Malaysian ringgit)

Domestic tourism

• Premium Statistic Number of domestic visitors in Malaysia 2013-2022
• Premium Statistic Number of domestic tourism trips in Malaysia 2013-2022
• Premium Statistic Average length of stay on domestic tourism trips Malaysia 2013-2022
• Premium Statistic Domestic tourism expenditure in Malaysia 2013-2022
• Premium Statistic Average expenditure on domestic tourism trips Malaysia 2013-2022
• Premium Statistic Domestic tourism expenditure of visitors in Malaysia 2022, by product

Number of domestic visitors in Malaysia 2013-2022

Number of domestic visitors in Malaysia from 2013 to 2022 (in millions)

Number of domestic tourism trips in Malaysia 2013-2022

Number of domestic tourism trips in Malaysia from 2013 to 2022 (in million)

Average length of stay on domestic tourism trips Malaysia 2013-2022

Average length of stay on domestic tourism trips in Malaysia from 2013 to 2022 (in days)

Domestic tourism expenditure in Malaysia 2013-2022

Domestic tourism expenditure in Malaysia from 2013 to 2022 (in billion Malaysian ringgit)

Average expenditure on domestic tourism trips Malaysia 2013-2022

Average expenditure on domestic tourism trips in Malaysia from 2013 to 2022 (in Malaysian ringgit)

Domestic tourism expenditure of visitors in Malaysia 2022, by product

Domestic tourism expenditure of visitors in Malaysia in 2022, by product (in billion Malaysian ringgit)

Hotel industry

• Premium Statistic Value added by the accommodation services industry in Malaysia 2017-2021
• Premium Statistic Number of hotels in Malaysia 2013-2022
• Premium Statistic Number of hotel rooms available Malaysia 2022, by state
• Premium Statistic Average occupancy rates of hotels in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 2013-2022
• Premium Statistic Number of foreign hotel guests in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 2013-2022

Value added by the accommodation services industry in Malaysia 2017-2021

Value added by the accommodation services industry in Malaysia from 2017 to 2021 (in billion Malaysian ringgit)

Number of hotels in Malaysia 2013-2022

Number of hotels in Malaysia from 2013 to 2022

Number of hotel rooms available Malaysia 2022, by state

Number of hotel rooms available in Malaysia in 2022, by state (in 1000s)

Average occupancy rates of hotels in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 2013-2022

Average occupancy rates of hotels in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from 2013 to 2022

Number of foreign hotel guests in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 2013-2022

Number of foreign hotel guests in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from 2013 to 2022 (in millions)

Economic impact

• Premium Statistic Gross value added tourism industries (GVATI) Malaysia 2013-2022
• Premium Statistic Share of GVATI in Malaysia 2022, by sector
• Premium Statistic Number of employees in tourism industry Malaysia 2013-2022
• Premium Statistic Tourism receipts value Malaysia 2014-2023
• Premium Statistic Breakdown of tourist expenditure Malaysia 2021

Gross value added tourism industries (GVATI) Malaysia 2013-2022

Gross value added tourism industries (GVATI) in Malaysia from 2013 to 2022 (in billion Malaysian ringgit)

Share of GVATI in Malaysia 2022, by sector

Share of gross value added of tourism industries (GVATI) in Malaysia in 2022, by sector

Number of employees in tourism industry Malaysia 2013-2022

Number of people employed in the tourism industry in Malaysia from 2013 to 2022 (in millions)

Total value of tourism receipts in Malaysia from 2014 to 2023 (in billion Malaysian ringgit)

Breakdown of tourist expenditure Malaysia 2021

Breakdown of tourist expenditure in Malaysia in 2021

Consumer behavior

• Premium Statistic Common issues about traveling among Malaysians 2023
• Premium Statistic Perceived level of safety when traveling with COVID-19 among Malaysians 2023
• Premium Statistic Main reasons for domestic travels Malaysia 2022

Common issues about traveling among Malaysians 2023

Most common concerns about traveling among tourists in Malaysia as of January 2023

Perceived level of safety when traveling with COVID-19 among Malaysians 2023

Perceived level of safety when traveling during COVID-19 among tourists in Malaysia as of January 2023

Main reasons for domestic travels Malaysia 2022

Main reasons for undertaking domestic trips in Malaysia in 2022

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The two main activities prohibited during the COVID-19 pandemic are movement and congregation – these are the two exact words that define tourism. UNWTO’s World Tourism Barometer indicated that tourism arrivals fell from 1.47 billion in 2019 to 399 million in 2020, signifying a 74.0 per cent decrease worldwide.

Prior to the pandemic, Malaysia’s economy was highly dependent on tourism, which was the third largest contributor to national GDP at the time, after manufacturing and commodities. In perspective, 2019 brought 25.83 million tourists, generating RM 84.1 billion in tourist receipts for Malaysia. The Gross Value Added of Tourism Industries (GVATI) further accounted for 9.1 per cent or RM240 billion of the country’s GDP in 2019.

Based on these statistics, Malaysia envisioned becoming the leading tourist destination through its Economic Transformation Programme and targeted to receive 30 million tourists and RM100 billion in tourist receipts in conjunction with Visit Malaysia 2020.

On 18 th  March 2020, all these aspirations came to a complete stop.

As a result of the Movement Control Order (MCO) and the closure of international borders, Malaysia’s tourist receipts contracted by 85.3% from RM86.14 billion in 2019 to a mere RM12.69 billion in 2020. The Companies Commission of Malaysia (CCM) reported that in 2020, 204 tourism-related companies were forced to shut down, including 109 hotels and short-term lodgings and 95 travel companies that ceased operations. The airline industry, meanwhile, incurred losses worth RM10.9 billion. Though Malaysia was not alone in registering negative growth in 2020 as a result of closing its borders, that year was deemed Malaysia’s darkest year for tourism.

So, where are we today?

Malaysia’s travel sector has seen gradual growth in domestic tourism since the relaxation of inter-district and inter-state travel restrictions. Even though Malaysia’s international borders officially reopened on 1 st  April 2022, it will take at least three years for tourism in Malaysia to return to pre-pandemic levels. On the bright side, the break from mass tourism has significantly reduced the anthropogenic ill-effects of tourism and its related activities on the environment, paving the way for the re-opening of borders to attract a niche of tourists seeking safe, clean, and sustainable destinations. However, the economic and social safety net of tourism and its stakeholders has been compromised since the onset of COVID-19. Consequently, despite tourism activities picking up speed again, the return of the workforce to their hospitality careers has been challenging.

What is the future for the industry?

The tourism landscape has been undeniably altered, perhaps permanently. In the foreseeable future, safety, space, carrying capacity, and memorable experiences will be in higher demand to cater to the needs and behavioural intentions of future tourists. This includes crisis management in all forms, from biological warfare like COVID-19 to  terrorism, climate change, and geopolitical issues. It is crucial to acknowledge all these aspects in the policy formulation process, along with continued engagement and collaboration with stakeholders, to ensure a resilient industry for the future. Such structural policy changes and evidence-based solutions address Malaysia’s readiness, recovery, reform, and resilience in facing future crises, which achieves tourism sustainability and ascertains the future success of tourism in Malaysia.

Figure 1: Pela’u fishermen selling their catch to tourist, Mabul Island, Semporna Sabah

Figure 2: Courtesy visit to Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture Malaysia (MOTAC)

UNIVERSITI PUTRA MALAYSIA 43400 UPM SERDANG SELANGOR

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Malaysia’s Tourism Recovery Stumbling Behind Regional Neighbours

Nearly a year after reopening its borders, Malaysia is struggling to bring back tourists – especially compared with other Southeast Asian countries.

In the wake of pandemic curbs being rolled back, international visitors haven’t returned in large numbers, and Malaysia’s once-buoyant tourism industry is still largely being kept afloat by domestic travel, according to numerous players in the industry.

Meanwhile, ASEAN neighbours are cashing in on the return of tourists, led by Thailand, Singapore, and Indonesia.

CRUNCHING THE NUMBERS

According to Tourism Malaysia , the country welcomed about 3 million visitors in 2022, a major increase from just 134,728 visitors in 2021. The 2022 intake was only about 12% of the number that arrived in 2019.

However, Thailand, Singapore, and Indonesia — which in 2022 welcomed 10 million, 4.6 million, and 4.58 million visitors, respectively — each saw arrivals return to about 25% of pre-pandemic levels, a notably higher bounce-back than Malaysia’s.

Vietnam’s 3.6 million foreign visitors, although short of the government’s target, was still about 20% of its intake in 2019, well ahead of Malaysia’s 12%.

So what is Malaysia doing wrong?

In a series of interviews, as reported by Al Jazeera , tourism industry figures have offered a range of explanations for Malaysia’s weak rebound from the pandemic as compared with its ASEAN neighbours, from poor cost competitiveness to the country’s reputation as a ‘buttoned-up, predominantly Islamic society.’ Unfortunately, despite being afforded the opportunity to weigh in, Tourism Malaysia declined to comment.

Earlier this month, PAS – the Malaysian Islamic Party-backed state government in Kedah, which is home to the popular duty-free resort island of Langkawi – caused no small amount of frustration and set off shockwaves in the tenuously improving tourism sector when they floated a possible ban on alcohol sales, which quickly got picked up by various media outlets.

PAS has since come under some fire for such irresponsible comments, which can often do considerable economic harm despite not actually being anything more than talk, especially when disseminated outside of the country.

Their call for an alcohol ban, coupled with their successful bid to outlaw gambling, led at least one Asian media outlet, the influential South China Morning Post , to erroneously report that alcohol was being banned in Langkawi .

In response to the ensuing kerfuffle, and likely in a bid to mitigate the damage, Kedah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi clarified that the sale of alcohol in Langkawi is under the jurisdiction of the Finance Ministry, not the state government, and further, noted that the state government (PAS) had no authority to interfere with the tourist island’s duty-free status, which Langkawi has enjoyed with no actual problems since 1987.

Similarly, actions by Muhammad Fawwaz Muhammad Jan, a PAS member of parliament, made headlines when he marched into a Penang mall with a few of his supporters and targeted a Chinese New Year festive display and promotion, demanding that the display’s beer cans be removed or concealed. That caused a minor row , ending with the mall’s management inexplicably agreeing to cover everything and close down guest activities at the holiday display, so that “not a single can of beer can be seen at the venue.”

It was frustrating for many, because reports of an ‘ amicable solution ‘ being reached made it sound like a lovely, equitable compromise was reached, with smiles all around, when in fact, Fawwaz got exactly what he wanted – some cheap political publicity and a stop to the promotion of beer – and the mall’s management folded like a cheap card table, even though they had done nothing wrong, and had abided by all laws and regulations at every turn.

The MP was roundly criticised for overstepping his authority and “ assuming the role of moral police ” in his objection to something that is legal, properly licensed and approved, and in line with the rights of the country’s non-Muslims. (Why the mall management capitulated to his demands, then, is beyond belief, as this will only further embolden the issuance of similar demands from PAS in the future in their quest to abolish all alcohol in Malaysia .)

Again, the incident was broadcast through numerous media channels, and once stories like this get outside into the global media sphere, it has the result of making it seem to prospective international visitors that Malaysia is a draconian and intolerant country. Recent other headlines about Melaka’s religious authorities ‘ banning bikinis ‘ at the state’s popular island beaches only serve to reinforce this perception.

As for the ‘war on beer,’ it’s unfortunately not like this should even be big news: Malaysia already has some of the world’s highest alcohol taxes in place, and public spats over all things boozy are a frequent occurrence in Malaysian politics.

Beer magnate Carlsberg, which operates one of the two well-known breweries in Malaysia, cannot even have their brand name on their delivery vehicles, which is why you see large green lorries on local roads bearing only the word ‘Probably’ – part of Carlsberg’s famous tagline , but an odd word to have emblazoned in giant letters on the side of a delivery vehicle.

Neighbouring Thailand, on the other hand, has built on its reputation for having a far more tolerant attitude towards vices, even having taken the step of decriminalising cannabis in June 2022.

Another part of the problem, some say, is that Tourism officials lean too heavily on Singapore visitors to prop up Malaysia’s overall international arrivals numbers. In pre-pandemic years, for example, it was common for arrivals from Singapore to make up half or more of all international visitors. Malaysia would cheerfully crow about being in the world’s top 10 for all international arrivals, but in reality, half of those visitors were just coming across the Causeway from Singapore to take advantage of far cheaper goods and services in Johor Bahru.

It’s not that those arrivals shouldn’t count, of course, but it’s disingenuous to compare an arrival from Singapore, who may be visiting and staying with family in Malaysia, or just coming across for a shopping day trip, with a week-long tourist from Europe, the US, Australia, or East Asia. Even if Tourism Malaysia only counts Singaporean arrivals who stay in Malaysia for at least 24 hours, realistically, it’s still just not the same, and lumping in the Singapore-JB crowd with global tourists certainly skews the inbound tourism numbers.

All of this matters because tourism is by no means an insignificant part of Malaysia’s economy. In 2019, according to government reports , tourism industry receipts accounted for just under 16% of the country’s entire GDP, bringing in over RM240 billion, and providing employment for 3.6 million Malaysians, a noteworthy percentage of the nation’s labour force.

INTERNATIONAL TOURISTS CHOOSING OTHER COUNTRIES?

Al Jazeera interviewed tourism veteran Anthony Wong, who we’ve featured on ExpatGo in the past. Wong is considered a pioneer of eco-tourism in Malaysia and owns the Frangipani Resort & Spa in Langkawi.

“From mid-December to mid-March, I used to have 80-90% of clients from Europe,” he said, noting it’s considerably lower now. He speculated that it’s due to a number of factors.

“Flights to Malaysia from Europe are less [frequent] and more expensive, and Langkawi is not as cheap as its neighbours, especially the accommodation. … Europe is also going into recession, with inflation going up, and issues related to the ongoing war in Ukraine make it more challenging for them to spend money on travelling.”

Meanwhile, Arthur Wilkinson, a Penang-born entrepreneur who had a thriving tourism-dependent business in Georgetown, closed up shop for good amid the pandemic as the long-lasting border closure in Malaysia reduced his business to a trickle.

Now, he’s relocated the entire enterprise to Bali to take advantage of their better visitor numbers, and what he describes as a better, more reliable labour force.

“We need to stimulate tourism somehow before it’s too late, as Malaysia is losing massively to Thailand and Indonesia,” he said. “Even though Malaysia has a much wider variety of cuisines, our food and beverage scene and quality isn’t quite up to par compared to our neighbours, which also have lower alcohol tax and are more open to new ideas of tourism.”

COST A FACTOR

When attractions inflate their prices for foreign tourists (as opposed to local visitors), it can backfire and push away the very international visitors the attraction presumably seeks to attract. Seeing a sign with two schedules of fees – one for locals and a much higher one for non-Malaysian visitors – is off-putting, for obvious reasons, coming across as both discrimination and flagrant profiteering.

Just recently, Selangor and the Petaling Jaya City Council have been slammed relentlessly for announcing they would impose a charge for their ‘free bus’ – but only for foreigners , which of course targets the poorest migrant workers and the occasional foreign visitor, as the relatively well-heeled resident expats seldom use the free bus. The disgraceful move has been loudly criticised from all quarters, including human rights groups.

“Trying to build cost recovery solutions on the backs of the poorest and least empowered of customers is really a heartless move by the PJ City Council, so it’s imperative that this measure be rescinded immediately,” said Phil Robertson, the Deputy Director for Human Rights Watch in Asia.

Despite the withering criticism, however, the plan went into effect on January 15, and authorities insist it will remain in place, saying it’s no different than hospital care in Malaysia being subsidised or free for citizens but not for foreigners – an utterly absurd comparison to a free bus service.

Stories like this, as they circulate, get out and create and reinforce the perception that Malaysia is unfriendly to foreigners, and this can lead to obvious problems when it comes to tourism – and even investments by foreigners.

And of course, specifically targeting visitors is even more prone to unintended consequences. Tacking on a per-room, per-night ‘tourism tax’ (applicable to foreigners only) to the already-imposed service and sales taxes at hotels, for one example, can lead prospective visitors to consider other, more wallet-friendly destinations.

Similarly, falling behind in cost competitiveness will usually not work out well. A Malaysian resort who puts up its rates above those of similar-class properties in neighbouring countries, for instance, may make a bit more per guest, but the total number of guests will likely fall below that of the competing resort over time.

Pricey Langkawi accommodation has come under scrutiny for this very phenomenon, not least by Malaysian travellers. “Why would my family pay hundreds of ringgit each to fly to Langkawi, then pay RM400-500 a night for a decent hotel when we can pay less to have the same holiday in Phuket – and with better food and better beaches?” one local traveller explained.

Over in East Malaysia, which so far has actually enjoyed a better recovery overall than the Peninsula, struggles with cost competitiveness, as well.

For those with less to spend, travel and accommodation costs in Sabah and Sarawak, which are at their highest in years, could be a deterrent.

“Most lodges and transport providers introduced a hike of up to 20%, while government agencies such as Sabah Parks doubled the price of some permits and entrances,” said Jessica Yew, who is the director of Kota Kinabalu-based boutique tour company Sticky Rice Travel.

The sharply higher prices in East Malaysia include permits to climb to the summit of 4,095-m Mount Kinabalu, which just doubled from RM200 to RM400.

According to the Al Jazeera report, when adding up the costs of permits, guides, food, and accommodation, the cheapest packages to tackle the lofty summit come to about RM2,300 per person.

Another major draw for Malaysian Borneo is of course its famed orangutans. But prices have risen so sharply, tour operators actually send prospective visitors to Indonesia instead.

“I tell people to go to Sumatra to see orangutans,” one said, “as it costs one-third to one-fifth of Malaysian Borneo’s prices.”

A LONG-TERM, SUSTAINED STRATEGY IS NEEDED

A lack of consistency and implementation in tourism promotion has also been mooted as part of the problem.

“Malaysia does not lack attractions, especially natural ones. Tourism development suffers from inconsistent policies and promotional activities over the past decades,” said Fabio Delisi, who has more than 30 years of experience in tourism across the region, and runs inbound tour operator Lotus Asia Tours. “Tourism is a very long-term public relation exercise.”

Delisi, whose company also operates in Indonesia and Singapore, remarked to Al Jazeera that Malaysia’s fortunes have stood in stark contrast to those of Indonesia – and not just in the last year.

“We are wholesalers operating in Malaysia, Indonesia, and Singapore since the early 1990s, and in 2022, have experienced a decline of arrivals of up to 90% from our main Western markets into Malaysia, while we have seen double-digit growth in Indonesia for the same period,” he said.

“We are paying the price for more than 20 years of random policies without focus and continuity,” he noted, highlighting the need for a framed, coordinated, and consistent strategy over time to grow inbound tourism.

Interestingly, when perusing Tourism Malaysia’s own marketing plan (2022-2026) , authorities here name these problems among the country’s weaknesses, too, specifically poor cost competitiveness, lack of advertising, and inadequate uniform communication. There also seems to be a strong push on growing domestic tourism, which while not undesirable as part of a broader effort to strengthen the country’s tourism sector, doesn’t do as much for the country’s recovering economy as bringing in foreign tourist dollars.

Reporting from Al Jazeera, New Straits Times, Malaysia Now, and SCMP contributed to this article, as did published reports from the Malaysia Ministry of Tourism.

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MALAYSIA’S NATIONAL TOURISM POLICY: FOCUS ON RECOVERY, CONNECTIONS, AND SUSTAINABILITY

In late December 2020, the Prime Minister of Malaysia launched Malaysia’s National Tourism Policy 2020-2030, giving concrete direction for the future of Malaysia’s tourism industry over the next ten years.

In his speech, the Prime Minister emphasised the importance of recovery, connections, and sustainability. In the challenging period that we are facing right now and the limitations imposed upon us by the pandemic, these are the core actions we must all embrace, regardless of whatever industry we are in.

These three core ideas are emphasised further through the National Tourism Policy’s six transformational strategies namely:

• Strengthen governance
• Create special tourism investment zones
• Embrace smart tourism
• Enhance demand sophistication
• Practise sustainable and responsible tourism
• Upskill human capital

At Islamic Tourism Centre (ITC), we fully align with these concepts as well, understanding that we need to continue our efforts to revitalise the tourism sector with the best possible preparation. Insha Allah, our efforts now are to prepare for a time later when the availability of effective vaccines and the opening of borders can boost travel again.

To move us forward, ITC has embraced the philosophy of “New thinking, new actions, new results.” With this shift in perspective, we are more focused on engaging with key influencers, deepening our relations with industry players, and strengthening our ITC brand locally and internationally.

Under the National Tourism Policy, Muslim-friendly tourism has been given a priority as well with the aim of cementing Malaysia’s position as the global leader in an alternative and ethical form of tourism beyond rituals. Towards this end, ITC has been tasked to consolidate Malaysia’s position as the world’s top destination for Muslim-friendly travel by increasing the depth of Islamic hospitality.

ITC aspires to fulfil these goals through five key actions:

• Creating smart partnerships with related agencies to establish Malaysia as the global centre for Muslim-friendly hotel certification
• Positioning ITC as the leading repository of market intelligence and reference centre for Muslim-friendly tourism and hospitality
• Branding Malaysia as the top venue for Islamic contemporary lifestyle through conferences, fashion shows, art and calligraphy exhibitions, and gastronomy festivals
• Leveraging on Islamic principles as the foundation to raise the service quality of Muslim-friendly hotels
• Establishing smart partnerships between ITC and the Ministry of Health and the Malaysia Health Travel Council to turn Malaysia into a front-runner in Islamic healthcare and wellness.

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From the Field: Greening tourism in Malaysia

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When done well, tourism can serve as a sustainable cornerstone of a country’s economy, simultaneously supporting ecosystems and livelihoods, according to the UN Development Programme ( UNDP ).

In Malaysia, tourism is a major economic sector and generated over $18 billion in revenue in 2019.

After revenues plummeted by 72 per cent during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Malaysian authorities, with the help of UNDP ’s  sustainable tourism recovery project, looked to reinvigorate the industry by putting out a greener welcome mat for global visitors.

On  World Tourism Day , marked annually on 27 September, find out how they did it  here .

• From the Field

Malaysia sees 32.5% more tourists in first quarter of 2024, says Tiong

K UALA LUMPUR: Tourism in Malaysia is on the rise, with 5.8 million tourists in the first quarter of 2024, says Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing.

"This is a growth of 32.5% compared to last year’s 4.3 million,” said the Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister.

He also said that the 30-day visa exemption for Chinese and Indian tourists has boosted arrivals in Malaysia.

He said the ministry would also seek to increase flights to places like West Asia, China, India, and South Korea to encourage more direct flights into the country.

Visa facilitation, alongside improved accessibility and flight connectivity, is important to achieve the goal of attracting around 36 million tourists and generating RM150 bil for Visit Malaysia 2026.

Meanwhile, Tiong urged hoteliers to consider upgrading and renovating their premises.

He said that he has highlighted to the Cabinet for Bank Pembangunan Malaysia Berhad that it should be more proactive in giving loans to tourism companies when needed.

"If it is still slow to give loans, we will ask other commercial banks to take over.

"The Finance Ministry will chair a meeting to resolve your problem or any difficulties that you are facing in getting the facilities from the government," he said during a networking session with industrial and state tourism bodies in the Sheraton Hotel here on Tuesday (April 30).

He added that the government has reserved RM1bil to upgrade the tourism industry.

Meanwhile, Tourism Malaysia deputy director Shahrin Mokhtar presented the strategic plans to realise Visit Malaysia 2026 goals.

"The Visit Malaysia 2026 roadmap is built on three core strategies - creating demand, increasing traffic, and prioritising target markets,” he said.

The board would enhance its marketing campaign by focusing 70% on the digital space, which includes influencer marketing and content creation.

He added that Tourism Malaysia would also focus on increasing tourist arrivals by flight to Malaysia.

"Compared with Singapore, whose air arrival is 79.1% and Thailand, whose air arrival is 84.5%, Malaysia is only 36.7%,” he said.

He said that an increase in air travel to Malaysia would result in increased spending in the country.

He said there is a lot of room for improvement, and plans are in place to collaborate with airlines to increase accessibility and seat capacity.

Tourism Satellite Account 2021 .favourite { position : absolute; width : 24px; height : 24px; background : url(images/icon/fav-pub-gray.png) no-repeat; top : 0px; right : 0; } .added { background : url(images/icon/fav-pub-yellow.png) no-repeat; }

Domestic Tourism dominated with 97.4 per cent to tourism expenditure in 2021

Gross Value Added of Tourism Industries (GVATI) amounted to RM197.9 billion contributing 12.8% to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) compared to 14.1 per cent in 2020. Based on the tourism subsectors performance, almost all industries have recorded negative growth rate except Retail sale of automotive fuel (4.7%), Retail trade (4.4%) and Country-specific tourism services (3.4%). Retail trade remained the main contributor to the tourism industry (56.1%). Tourism Direct Gross Domestic Product (TDGDP) recorded RM13.1 billion compared to RM28.4 billion in 2020, tumbled 53.8 per cent (2020: -72.2%). Overall, TDGDP contributed 0.9 per cent to GDP as against 2.0 per cent in 2020. The three main products in TDGDP were Retail trade, Accommodation and Food & beverage serving services with a combined share of 73.5 per cent in 2021. Inbound tourism expenditure plunged 96.6 per cent to RM0.47 billion in 2021 in tandem with the decline in the number of foreign tourist arrivals to Malaysia. The Internal tourism consumption has generated RM17.9 billion, decreased by 65.8 percent from the previous year. Domestic tourism showed a significant performance by contributing 97.4 per cent to the total internal tourism consumption while inbound tourism recorded 2.6 per cent. Domestic tourism expenditure recorded RM17.5 billion in 2021 compared to RM38.6 billion in the previous year with a decrease of 54.8 per cent (2020: -58.3%). The three tourism products that recorded a significant double-digit decline were Travel agency services (-77.7%), followed by Passenger transport services (-64.5%) and Food & beverage serving services (-62.9%). Employment in the tourism industry recorded 3.52 million people in 2021 which contributed 23.4 per cent to the total employment. The employment of this industry has recovered to 1.8 per cent from a negative 2.9 per cent in the previous year. The full publication of the Tourism Satellite Account 2021 can be downloaded through   eStatistik  portal.

Released by:

DEPARTMENT OF STATISTICS MALAYSIA 28 September 2022

Contact person:

Baharudin bin Mohamad Public Relation Officer Strategic Communication and International Division Department of Statistics, Malaysia Tel : +603-8885 7942 Fax : +603-8888 9248 Email : baharudin[at]dosm.gov.my

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• Tourism Satellite Account 2020
• Tourism Satellite Account 2019
• Tourism Satellite Account 2018
• Tourism Satellite Account 2017
• Tourism Satellite Account 2016
• Tourism Satellite Account 2015
• Tourism Satellite Account, 2010-2014
• Tourism Satellite Account 2005 - 2013
• Tourism Satellite Account 2005 - 2012
• Tourism Satellite Account 2005 - 2011
• Tourism Satellite Account 2000 - 2010

Department of Statistics, Malaysia Block C6, Complex C, Federal Government Administrative Centre, 62514, PUTRAJAYA Tel : 03-8885 7000 Fax : 03-8888 9248 Email : [email protected] (general enquiries) [email protected] (data request & enquiries) Website : https://www.dosm.gov.my

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Malaysia’s tourism recovery flops as Thailand, Indonesia cash in

Malaysia is struggling to bring back tourists compared with its Southeast Asian peers after scrapping pandemic curbs.

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – For Arthur Wilkinson, a Penang-born entrepreneur who opened Malaysia’s first flotation therapy centre on his tropical island home, nearly two years without tourists marked the end of the road.

Float For Health, located in Tanjung Tokong, a coastal township on the northeastern side of Penang island, shut up shop for good in January 2021 as border restrictions introduced to keep out COVID-19 reduced customers to a trickle.

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“Eighty percent of my customers were tourists, and at that time, anyone working in this industry suffered for obvious reasons,” Wilkinson, who also runs the restaurant Heap Seng at 29 in George Town, told Al Jazeera.

Malaysia reopened its borders to tourists in April, before dropping all vaccination and PCR-test requirements in August.

But nearly a year since hailing the return of international visitors, Malaysia’s tourism sector is not only struggling but playing catchup to its Southeast Asian peers.

Malaysia welcomed about 3 million visitors in 2022, up from 134,728 visitors the previous year, according to Tourism Malaysia. The intake was just about 12 percent of the number that arrived in 2019.

Thailand, Singapore and Indonesia — which welcomed 10 million, 4.6 million and 4.58 million visitors, respectively — saw arrivals return to about one-quarter of pre-pandemic levels.

Vietnam’s 3.6 million foreign visitors, although short of the government’s target, was about one-fifth of its intake in 2019.

Tourist industry figures have offered a range of explanations for Malaysia’s weak rebound from the pandemic compared with its neighbours, from poor cost competitiveness to the country’s reputation as a buttoned-up, predominantly Islamic society. Tourism Malaysia declined to comment.

Earlier this month, the Malaysian Islamic Party-backed state government in Kedah, home to the popular duty-free resort island Langkawi, caused jitters in the tourism sector when it floated a possible ban on alcohol sales.

Kedah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Md later clarified that the sale of alcohol in Langkawi is under the jurisdiction of the Finance Ministry, not the state government, and the state government had no authority to interfere with the tourist island’s duty-free status.

Malaysia already has some of the world’s highest alcohol taxes and imposes harsh punishments for drug offences, including the death penalty for trafficking.

Neighbouring Thailand, meanwhile, has built on its reputation for having a tolerant attitude towards vices, decriminalising cannabis in June 2022.

“From mid-December to mid-March, I used to have 80-90 percent of clients from Europe, and now I only have about 60 percent,” Anthony Wong, owner of Frangipani Langkawi Resort & Spa, one of the island’s oldest eco-resorts, told Al Jazeera.

“Flights to Malaysia from Europe are less [frequent] and more expensive, and Langkawi is not as cheap as its neighbours, especially the accommodation. … Europe is also going into recession, with inflation going up, and issues related to the ongoing war in Ukraine make it more challenging for them to spend money on travelling,” Wong said.

Wilkinson, who relocated his flotation therapy business to Indonesia’s Bali to take advantage of the higher tourist numbers and what he said was more dependable labour, said Malaysia could not afford to be complacent about its attractiveness to foreign visitors.

“We need to stimulate tourism somehow before it’s too late, as Malaysia is losing massively to Thailand and Indonesia,” he said.

“Even though Malaysia has a much wider variety of cuisines, our food and beverage scene and quality isn’t quite up to par compared to our neighbours, which also have lower alcohol tax and are more open to new ideas of tourism.”

Fabio Delisi, manager of Kuala Lumpur-based inbound tour operator Lotus Asia Tours, said he believes Malaysia’s potential has been held back by lacklustre promotion and relatively poor connectivity compared with other parts of the region.

“Malaysia does not lack attractions, especially natural ones. Tourism development suffers from inconsistent policies and promotional activities over the past decades,” Delisi, who has more than 30 years of experience in tourism across the region, told Al Jazeera. “Tourism is a very long-term public relation exercise.”

Delisi, whose company also operates in Indonesia and Singapore, said Malaysia’s fortunes have stood in stark contrast to those of Indonesia.

“We are wholesalers operating in Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore since the early nineties, and in 2022 have experienced a decline of arrivals of up to 90 percent from our main Western markets into Malaysia, while we have seen double-digit growth in Indonesia for the same period,” he said.

In East Malaysia, which is separated from Peninsular Malaysia by the South China Sea, there are signs that tourism is rebounding much faster.

Operators there have benefitted from a niche market of high-spending Westerners seeking out tropical adventures in Malaysia’s eastern states on the island of Borneo, which is renowned for its wildlife and unspoiled nature.

“We hit the same revenue as 2019 last year despite it being an eight-month operation,” Jessica Yew, director of boutique tour company Sticky Rice Travel, which has its headquarters in Kota Kinabalu, the capital of Sabah state, told Al Jazeera.

“It’s mostly because of our market segment. [We cater to the] high-end/deluxe US market — the pandemic had little to no effect on their finances, and they were just waiting for the border to reopen. Europeans and British inquiries trickle in, but closing the sale for these is harder.”

For those with less to spend, travel and accommodation costs in Borneo, which are at their highest in years, could be off-putting.

“Most lodges and transport providers introduced a hike of up to 20 percent, while government agencies such as Sabah Parks doubled the price of some permits and entrances,” Yew said.

The higher prices include permits to climb Mount Kinabalu, Malaysia’s highest peak standing at 4,095 metres (13,435 feet), which this month doubled from 200 ringgit to 400 ringgit ($46 to $92).

When added to the costs of guides, food, and accommodation, the cheapest packages to tackle the summit come to about $550 per person.

While Sabah is generally cheap outside conservation areas, only some of the state’s protected parks are promoted by authorities as the main selling points for visitors.

“I tell people to go to Sumatra [in Indonesia] to see orangutans, as it costs one-third to one-fifth of Malaysian Borneo’s prices,” Yew said.

For many other operators, the return of Chinese and South Korean visitors, the biggest cohort of visitors to Sabah before the pandemic, will be crucial to their fortunes in the coming year.

Businesses, in particular, are keeping a close watch on China’s reopening of its borders last week after three years of international isolation.

Still, some within the sector are sceptical of any quick fix to the sector’s struggles.

“We are paying the price for more than twenty years of random policies without focus and continuity,” said Delisi of Lotus Asia Tours.

“Despite the effort of a number of good technocrats, without a framed, coordinated and consistent strategy, I don’t see how things may change or improve soon.”

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Ecotourism: Opportunity For The Tourism Sector In Malaysia To Revive

• Attracting ecotourism investors by promoting and emphasising the uniqueness, strengths and development opportunities of Malaysia’s ecotourism sites.
• Introducing a protocol for ecotourism concessions that enhances the quality of the tourist experience in national parks besides ensuring sustainable financing.
• Consolidating research through the re-establishment of educational research centres in selected national parks and urban ecotourism sites through partnerships with local universities and NGOs.
• Repositioning marine protected areas in Malaysia as ecotourism destinations that champion the conservation and management of marine and terrestrial resources for the enjoyment of tourists responsibly while enhancing the well-being of the local community;
• Encouraging variants of the homestay concept by guiding providers to offer a mix of ‘live in’ homestays, annex type homestay, kampungstay, farmstay etc. according to the needs of specific market segments.
• Marketing and promoting activity driven, eco-adventure activities to the gen Y, youth associations, school and university groups and urban families.
• Identifying measures of ecotourism activity including data on visitors and visitor management issues in protected areas.

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How to package community-based Malaysian tourism for a post-pandemic market

Malaysia has been experiencing a positive tourism impact over the past decade. In 2019, tourism receipts were USD 23 billion, and international arrivals recorded 26 billion visitors. The country attracts most tourists from Singapore, Thailand, China, Indonesia, and India.

As a hub for international transit to the region, the country also caters for a wide range of rural Malaysian tourism products.  A total labour force of 3.6 million, about 10% of our total population, shows the sector’s significance as an income generator. However, the intervention of the COVID-19 pandemic has made the tourism sector bleed.

The impact of COVID on Malaysian tourism

This is evident because only 4 million tourists entered Malaysia in 2019, which was recorded just before the national border lockdown in March 2020. By realizing the severity of the international travel ban, the country has focused on domestic tourism. In the post pandemic era, the authorities are expected to diversify tourism destinations by focusing on rural tourism products. This strategy is essential to reduce overcrowding in mass tourism destinations that can result in virus spreading.

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Tourism development in Malaysia is closely aligned with the state’s objectives: eradicate poverty, rural community development, reduce the disparity between the rich and poor, leading to the cohesion of the Malaysian culture and, ultimately, the promotion of national unity. To gain competitiveness in tourism development, the government agencies must work with relevant stakeholders to achieve sustainability. Malays, Chinese, Indians and various indigenous people of Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak, live and work harmoniously in a multi-ethnic society. This is also reflected in Malaysia, Truly Asia promotional campaign by Tourism Malaysia – 

“To know Malaysia is to love Malaysia. A bubbling, bustling melting pot of races and religions where Malays, Indians, Chinese and many other ethnic groups live together in peace and harmony” . ( TOURISM MALAYSIA , 2020)

How communities in Malaysia are using Community-based Tourism

In Malaysia, communities are involved in the tourism sector in several ways. Most of the communities are using the concept of Community-based Tourism (CBT) in community development. CBT is a type of rural tourism usually managed by communities and intended to deliver more comprehensive community benefits. It appears that most of the CBT initiatives in Malaysia focus on homestay programs and are conducted in rural areas.

CBT has been promoted in a community because of the government’s policy of using tourism to maximize the positive economic impacts. Studies conducted in Island Tourism Destinations reported that the local communities in islands enjoyed the benefits brought by tourism. However, language, seasonality and cost of training are some of the main barriers to stopping local communities from tourism. The government also emphasizes the role of e-commerce for CBT. A rural ICT project Bario, Sarawak, e-Bario, was raised to promote CBT tourism. As a result, the social and economic life of the community has improved.

The Malaysian government recognized community empowerment in cooperatives as vital to improving socio-economic benefits in many rural areas. One of the good successful CBT stories in Malaysia is establishing a community-based cooperative (KOPEL) in Lower Kinabatangan, Sabah. Local communities were found to participate in KOPEL’s tourism activities actively. It was reported that 14 percent of the total population are the member of the cooperative. They addressed four critical criteria in successful CBT such as:

• planning and empowerment
• awareness and training
• collaboration with other stakeholders, and
• impacts of rural tourism.

KOPEL actively collaborates with many government agencies, local and international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and private organizations. The collaboration allows KOPEL to get training, funds to protect wildlife and forest restoration.

Nevertheless, local indigenous communities are also actively involved in CBT. For instance, the Mah Meri indigenous community in Carey Island revealed that tourism had impacted them economically, socially, culturally and environmentally. However, the community feel anxious that the lack of natural resources will cause the degradation of their culture and tourism.

The consequences of Community-based Tourism

Despite the economic benefits of tourism, it could also cause adverse impacts such as the destruction of flora and fauna, impact natural resources such as water and soil. In addition, the implementation of sustainable tourism is always a challenge and difficult. Apart from that, tourism can also threaten the communities from excessive development, carrying capacity, and manipulating local culture. Tourism also heavily consumes the resources it depends on. In contrast, sustainable tourism is planned to benefit the local community, appreciate their culture, protect natural resources, channel the economic benefits directly to the local community and create awareness to both tourists and the local community about the significance of conservation.

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Thus, various tourism stakeholders can use CBT as a main tourism agenda for the post-pandemic period. Diverting the tourist market to rural tourism destinations will avoid mass crowding. Apart from that, this strategy will help the mass tourism destinations to focus on carrying capacity issues by giving importance to quality tourism, responsible tourism, and systematic destination management approaches. Community-based tourism in the rural areas will also help the local communities to involve in ‘cultural commodification’ aiming at the economic sustainability of the local people.

Contributed by Dr. Puvaneswaran Kunasekaran, senior lecturer, School of Hospitality, Tourism and Events, Faculty of Social Sciences & Leisure Management, Taylor’s University

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TOURISM MALAYSIA UNVEILS STRATEGIC ROADMAP FOR VISIT MALAYSIA 2026

YB Dato Sri Tiong King Sing, Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture delivering his mandate at the Tourism Malaysia Strategic Direction Towards VM2026 Networking Session

KUALA LUMPUR, 30 April 2024 – Tourism Malaysia had a prominent start on 30th April 2024 by organising a networking session with the industry players by presenting its strategic direction and action plans focussing on promoting Malaysia internationally and domestically. This direction and action plans were crafted during the engagement session with industry players to ensure the fast conversion and high impact programme and achieve the common goal in attracting 35.6 million tourists and generate RM147.1 billion in receipts for Visit Malaysia 2026.

The VM 2026 roadmap is built on three core strategies – creating demand, increasing traffic, and prioritising target markets. Key initiatives include branding and marketing blitz, strategic partnerships for joint promotions/tactical campaigns and market segmentation.

Malaysia's notable tourism achievements for the first quarter of 2024 are promising. During this period, from January to March, Malaysia saw a significant influx of foreign tourists, reaching 5.8 million arrivals. This marks a remarkable growth of 32.5% compared to the previous year's 4.3 million. The top ten markets contributing to this success were Singapore, Indonesia, China, Thailand, Brunei, India, South Korea, the United Kingdom, Australia, and the Philippines.

Tourism Malaysia will continue to empower its branding through aggressive advertising campaigns, influencer marketing, and compelling content creation across digital (70%) and traditional (30%) media platforms. The agency will also establish strategic partnerships with airlines, online travel agents (OTAs), and land/sea border operators of neighbouring countries to enhance tourist arrivals.

Key target markets are prioritised into three tiers, led by first-level priorities such as China, India, Indonesia, Vietnam and Australia. The second-level priorities include South Korea, Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries and the United Kingdom, followed by third-level priorities comprising Chinese Taipei and Germany. Apart from traditional markets such as Brunei, Thailand and Singapore, the focus is also highlighted on emerging markets like Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Meanwhile, tourism products and travel experiences will be tailored for niche segments like nature-based tourism, experiential tourism, medical & wellness tourism, responsible tourism, luxury, weddings, Muslim-friendly, gastronomy, and bleisure travel.

YB Dato Sri Tiong King Sing, Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, said: "Our multipronged VM 2026 strategy provides a comprehensive framework to boost Malaysia's visibility, enhance destination accessibility and elevate our tourism offerings. Through focused efforts and strategic collaborations, we are confident of achieving our yearly arrivals and target receipts in the run-up to VM 2026."

Tourism Malaysia will continue engaging industry stakeholders and international partners to refine and execute the VM 2026 strategies, positioning Malaysia as a preferred tourist destination in this region.

About Tourism Malaysia

Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board, also known as Tourism Malaysia, is an agency under the Ministry of Tourism, Arts & Culture Malaysia. It focuses on the specific task of promoting Malaysia as a preferred tourism destination. Since its inception, it has emerged as a major player in the international tourism scene.

The next Visit Malaysia Year, set to take place in 2026, will commemorate the sustainability of the nation's tourism industry, which is also in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDG).

Furthermore, Tourism Malaysia actively endorses the Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle (IMT-GT), working towards the realisation of the IMT-GT Visiting Year 2023-2025, with the shared aim of promoting the region as a unified tourism destination. For more information, visit Tourism Malaysia’s social media accounts on Facebook , Instagram , Twitter , YouTube , and TikTok .

For enquiries, please contact:

Mohamed Shahrir Hadzim Deputy Director Strategic Planning Division [email protected] Tel: +603 8891 8164

Marhafizman Mohamad Daud Senior Tourism Officer Corporate Communications Division [email protected] Tel: +603 8891 8755

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