Dubai: Malaysia aims to increase tourist arrivals from the Middle East by 66 per cent in 2007 through an intensive promotion campaign.
Last year, 186,821 people from the region visited Malaysia, an increase of about 22 per cent on 2005.
The Southeast Asian nation's aggressive tourism promotion in the region coincides with the Visit Malaysia Year, which is being held to mark the 50th independence anniversary.
"Malaysia attracted 17.54 million people last year, which is a 6.8 per cent growth compared with 2005. We are poised to receive 20.1 million visitors in 2007," Tourism Minister Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor said in Dubai.
"The number of Middle East tourists was 186,821. We are determined to increase that to 300,000 this year," he added.
Events
More than 240 festive events are being organised throughout the year to show the country's culture and heritage to foreign visitors.
A tourism sector delegation accompanying the minister is in the UAE to participate in the annual Arabian Travel Market. Later, the Malaysians plan to hold roadshows in key target markets such as Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and Syria.
Malaysia has been making concerted efforts to woo a large number of tourists from the region for years.
At Kuala Lumpur International Airport, announcements are made in Arabic among other languages. During the peak tourist season in summer, some hotels and travel agencies also hire Arab-speaking staff.
"Citizens of all Arab countries are issued visa on arrival. UAE-based expatriates from South Asia are also extended a similar facility," said Syed Muhadzir Jamallulil, regional director of Tourism Malaysia in Dubai.
Saudi Arabia is Malaysia's biggest market in the region, followed by the UAE. In 2006, the number of Saudis visiting Malaysia was 60,000 compared with 53,000 in 2005.
The number of UAE nationals grew from 29,600 in 2005 to 35,000 last year.
There will be extra flights by Malaysia Airlines between Dubai and Malay-sia this year, Syed Muhad-zir said.
Normally most other airlines also increase flights between Kuala Lumpur and Gulf capitals.
According to the local Tourism Malaysia office, per capita spending for Gulf tourists was recorded between Dh6,000 and Dh7,000 last year.
