Doha: Tourism Malaysia embarked on a sales mission to Oman and Qatar from 12 to 15 May in its robust efforts to foster closer tourism ties and showcase its latest offerings to the West Asian market following successful participation in the recent Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2024.
Tourism Malaysia, along with a 23-member Malaysian delegation, included twelve travel agents, eight hoteliers, two product owners and a representative from the State government. The delegation showcased Malaysia’s latest tourism products which are truly enchanting, entertaining, inspiring, alluring, relaxing and exhilarating.
The mission facilitated targeted business-to-business (B2B) sessions and networking dinners in Muscat and Doha, enabling productive partnerships and knowledge exchange between Malaysian and local travel trade partners.
Formal briefings and presentations further enhanced the understanding of Malaysia's dynamic tourism industry.
West Asian travellers had consistently ranked among the top five international spenders in Malaysia, boasting high per capita expenditure and longer average stays.
With a resurgence of West Asian tourists to Malaysia, this sales mission presented a strategic opportunity to amplify promotional efforts in Oman and Qatar.
In 2023, Malaysia welcomed 18,078 and 2,464 tourists from Oman and Qatar, respectively. While these numbers reflected a positive trajectory, the mission aimed to re-capture pre-pandemic arrivals of 23,911 and 4,089 logged in 2019. This target was further supported by the availability of convenient direct flights to Kuala Lumpur offered by Qatar Airways, Oman Air, and Salam Air.