MALAYSIA, along with its regional neighbours, saw a dip in tourist arrivals in the first quarter of this year, Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (Matta) president Tan Kok Liang said.

“There has been a slight decline, but it has nothing to do with the 14th general election.

“It basically means that the government and stakeholders have to work harder to bring in tourists,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

There were 8,477,466 arrivals from January to April, a 3.4% drop compared with 8,777,403 arrivals in the same period last year.

Tan said ways to elevate the industry included better flight rates, overseas marketing and easier visa application processes.

“They (government) should look into what it can do to promote the industry.

“It also needs to look into what is lacking and expand the infrastructure and services sectors to cater to the needs of tourists.”

Arrivals across Southeast Asia to Malaysia had declined.

Arrivals from Singapore to Malaysia saw a 18.3% drop in the first quarter of 2018 to 3,407,443, compared with 4,170,976 in the same period last year.

Despite the overall decline, tourists from China continued to top arrivals.

In the first quarter of the year, there were 1,008,998 arrivals from China, compared with 735,618 for the same period in 2017.

“This is due to social media marketing in China that promotes Malaysia.” – July 21, 2018.