PETALING JAYA: China has been Malaysia’s largest source of tourists outside Asean countries for seven consecutive years, marking a historic milestone in bilateral relations.
The year 2019 witnessed an impressive 3,795,800 bilateral people-to-people exchanges between the two nations before the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the Chinese Embassy in Malaysia.
The embassy has consistently prioritised and actively fostered exchanges and cooperation across various domains between the two nations. Continuous efforts have been dedicated to streamlining people-to-people exchanges to enhance the mutual benefits of the friendly relations between China and Malaysia.
In a statement yesterday, the embassy reported processing close to 260,000 visas in 2023, with a peak of over 4,000 visa applications handled in a single day.
On a positive note, Malaysia’s local tourism industry expressed optimism regarding the proactive efforts of the Tourism, Arts, and Culture Ministry (Motac) in promoting Malaysia as a tourist destination in major Chinese cities.
Coupled with the recently announced visa-free policy, industry players told The Star the country anticipates welcoming approximately five million Chinese tourists to Malaysia in the upcoming year.
Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) president Nigel Wong expressed their commitment to achieving this target set by Motac.
He said various initiatives have been implemented in anticipation of the return of Chinese tourists. Motac and Tourism Malaysia have already organised trade missions and MATTA plans to send its members on trade missions to China next year.
He said Chinese and Indian tourists have shown a keen interest in travelling to Malaysia. The introduction of visa-free arrivals is expected to boost this interest.
However, he added that it is crucial to ensure that marketing strategies are well-targeted and that the government provides the right incentives, such as grants, to encourage tourism stakeholders to engage directly with travel agents and tour operators from these countries.
Malaysia Inbound Chinese Association (MICA) president Datuk Dr Angie Ng acknowledged the challenge but said the goal is within reach and identified four critical factors: flights, visa exemptions, business tourism, and tourism services.
Ng elaborated on the current flight situation between China and Malaysia, noting that the passenger capacity can only accommodate three million visitors to Malaysia despite the planes being consistently full. The remaining two million people are targeted to enter Malaysia from neighbouring countries such as Singapore and Thailand.
Hence, she said operators in the tourism industry should proactively seek additional avenues to attain the target of attracting 5 million Chinese tourists.
“Consumption in neighbouring countries is higher than in Malaysia, and some tourists opt for Malaysia due to favourable currency exchange rates. As a result, our travel agencies implement twin programmes with neighbouring countries, encouraging tourists to visit Malaysia after their travels there,” she said.
She highlighted the positive impact of the visa-free policy, attracting numerous business groups to Malaysia.
Malaysian Inbound Tourism Association (Mita) President Mint Leong envisions collaboration with Motac to attract five million Chinese tourists in 2024. The ambitious target, backed by a free visa policy, aims to surpass the 1.5 million Chinese visitors recorded in 2023, focusing on increased flights and direct routes to tourist destinations.
Despite current flights being at 80% of 2019 levels, Leong said the industry is investing in promoting diverse tourism packages on social media, anticipating a surge during Chinese New Year and post-celebration boosts in tourism, driven by the 50th anniversary of Malaysia-China diplomatic relations.
Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH) vice-president Lim Choong Sean said foreign bookings are coming in, but they are not as strong as expected.
“The hotel industry will benefit more from the free visa policy if the government regulates unregistered accommodations.
“In pre-2019, Chinese tourist arrivals were robust in Malaysia. As of this year, the number of arrivals and returning tourists, including Chinese tourists, still does not meet expectations.
“The number of foreign tourists coming in is still low, and Singaporeans and Malaysians are the ones that are travelling a lot. So, we expect with this free visa, the Chinese tourist occupancy rate will increase by 30% or higher.”
