Tourism Malaysia said that despite the recent Influenza A (H1N1) epidemic, the number of Bruneians visiting the neighbouring country has not slowed down.
In September alone there were 82,772 Bruneians entering Malaysia, said Jamilah Abdul Halim, Tourism Malaysia director stationed in Brunei.
From January to September there were a total of 772,174 recorded Bruneians travelling to Malaysia, she told The Brunei Times. This represents a 4.9 per cent increase from the yearago figure.
Most went to Miri and Sabah for shopping attractions.
This apparently poses another challenge to Brunei's Tourism Development Board which has been tyring to hype interest among locals in visiting domestic tourism destinations on their vacations.
In all of 2008 there were 1,085,115 Bruneians who entered Malaysia and Jamilah said she is positive this year's total number will be higher.
"We have been offering promotions (that are) well publicised by the media and some attractive packages we have worked through local travel agents which contribute to that," she said, adding that the distance to Malaysia is "very near" and hence convenient.
For other Malaysian destinations in the East, Jamilah said that recent promotions by Royal Brunei Airlines (RBA) and Malaysian Airlines (MAS) have given Bruneians more opportunities to go abroad.
"Online tickets through AirAsia have been another factor as people enjoy going to Kuala Lumpur for the shopping," she said, adding that the competition amongst airlines gives Bruneians more reasons to visit Malaysia.
Jamila stressed that through their Tourism Malaysia booth at the 6th Abacus Travel Fair, which opens today, they will showcase more of a "niche market".
"We want to show that Malaysia is not just a place for shopping but can be a place where people go for wellness and relaxation," she added.
With Tourism Malaysia's current promotion, the director said Bruneians will see opportunities to explore other states in Malaysia.
"There is a home-stay programme in Labuan, Eastwood Valley and Country Club in Miri and A Famosa resort in Malacca, just to name a few. Sabah and Sarawak are good destinations but we are promoting places beyond those because there are other interesting states to explore," she said.
The director also stated that the travel fair comes at a good time as people are currently looking for vacation destinations for the upcoming holiday season.
"Locals will come to look for good deals on airfare which is good for us as we can showcase our booth," she said.
MAS' Brunei area manager Mohamed Safri Abdullah said that at the travel fair foreigners purchasing packages going to Malaysia will get a special deal.
"Abacus Travel Fair is a key event to look for best airline deals on offer. It's a way to encourage Bruneians to travel and change their mindset to book in advance to save money through better offers," he said.
In 2008, 22 million visitors entered Malaysia, resulting in tourism receipts of RM49,561 million ($20,650 million).
According to Tourism Malaysia's website, in 2008, Bruneian visits to Malaysia were the fourth-largest behind Singapore (11,300,492 visitors), Thailand and Indonesia.
Courtesy of The Brunei Times
Mission News
Bruneian visitors making Tourism Malaysia happy
29 October 2009
1 views
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN-Thursday, October 29, 2009
MALAYSIA is going full blast in its drive to receive a bigger number of Bruneians travelling for shopping, wellness and relaxation this year.