Bengaluru, 26 October 2018: A delegation from the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) is in South India on a sales mission to touch base and meet with local outbound tour operators in three major cities of Trichy, Bengaluru and Hyderabad from 22 to 27 October.
The 20-member delegation, led by MATTA President Datuk Tan Kok Liang, includes Malaysian inbound tour operators, hoteliers and theme park operators, and is in collaboration with Tourism Malaysia, South India office.
Tan said “Malaysia received a total of 552,739 visitors from India in 2017. For the first four months of this year, there was a 21.2 percent increase over the corresponding period last year.”
“Recognised as one of the most important markets to the Malaysia tourism industry due to its strategical geographical location close to Malaysia, it is important for MATTA to extend its promotional efforts with close collaboration between Indian outbound tour operators, Malaysian inbound tour operators and Tourism Malaysia to encourage more tourists from India visiting Malaysia.”
“To support such initiative, MATTA had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with leading travel associations from India such as Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI), Travel Agents Federation of India (TAFI) and South Indian Global Tour Operators Association (SIGTOA), and was witnessed by H.E. Dato' Hidayat Abdul Hamid, High Commissioner of Malaysia to the Republic of India. Also present was Mr. Noor Azman Samsudin, the Director of Tourism Malaysia for South India and Sri Lanka.”
“The MoU will enhance business operations and services amongst members of both organisations through the respective code of ethics and conduct. Through these cooperations, members can develop strategic partnership and promotion of their services to Indian outbound tour operators. Such collaboration will create favourable conditions for the continuous tourism growth for Malaysia and India tourism industry and for members interest.”
“Malaysia is well-known to be tourist-friendly among Indian visitors, and citizens of both countries have long enjoyed strong cultural ties. A great variety of tourism products are found throughout the country, from cool mountain resorts to sandy beaches, from quaint villages to modern cities that offer great shopping experiences.”
“Some of the newest attractions are the Desaru Coast Adventure Waterpark, one of the world’s biggest waterpark with hotels, two world-class golf courses and a conference centre for MICE tourist located in Johor Bahru, Genting Highland Skytropolis Amusement Park (December 2018) and the 20th Century Fox World (2019) that would appeal greatly to Indian families.”
“Since January 2018, MATTA has been constantly active with overseas promotions through sales missions to China, India, ASEAN countries and Europe including collaboration with airlines and hoteliers to add-value to tourist’s holiday experience in Malaysia, making Malaysia as the preferred tourist destination.”
“With over 230 weekly flights offering more than 41,000 seats from India to Malaysia, the total capacity is 2,132,000 a year. As such, the Indian market offers high potential for tour operators of both countries, and also for Malaysian hoteliers and theme park operators”, concluded Tan.
DATUK TAN KOK LIANG
President MATTA
Term 2017 – 2019