From November 2023, affected by a number of favorable policies such as China's visa-free implementation of Malaysia's ordinary passport, Malaysia's "tourism boom to China" continues to heat up. The reporter learned from the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism that from January to July this year, Malaysia's inbound tourists to Beijing increased by 548.4% year-on-year. According to Lim Swee Kwok, general manager of Golden Journey (GD), Malaysia's largest outbound travel wholesaler, nearly 200 inbound groups visited China in September and October.
On June 20, China and Malaysia issued the Joint Statement of the Government of the People's Republic of China and the Government of Malaysia on Deepening and Enhancing the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and Building a China-Malaysia Community with a Shared Future. The statement mentioned that China agreed to extend the visa-free policy for Malaysian citizens until the end of 2025, and as a reciprocal arrangement, Malaysia will extend the visa-free policy for Chinese citizens until the end of 2026. Thanks to the efforts of Malaysia and China, the visa-free visit for Malaysian citizens to China has been extended from the original 15 days to 30 days. At the same time, the visa-free policy for Chinese tourists to Malaysia and the mutual visa exemption policy between the two countries have also been extended.
Promotional materials were distributed at the Beijing booth
From September 6 to 8, local time, Asia's largest tourism special exhibition - 2024 Malaysia International Travel Exhibition (MATTA FAIR) was held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. As the vane of the development of the world's tourism industry, the exhibition has been held for 52 sessions. The Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism, together with six inbound enterprises including Beijing China Travel Service, China Youth Travel Service and Spring and Autumn International Travel Service, jointly participated in the exhibition, set up a "Hello, Beijing" theme booth, and carried out high-density business negotiations with overseas partners during the exhibition, comprehensively publicized and promoted Beijing's cultural and tourism products, and promoted in-depth cooperation in inbound tourism.
The "Four Treasures of the Study" workshop at the Beijing booth
During their stay in Kuala Lumpur, the Beijing delegation met with the Malaysia Tourism Association and had an in-depth exchange of views on Beijing's inbound tourism products, prices, channels, marketing, aviation and other aspects, especially the Beijing winter ice and snow tourism as a new driving force for Malaysia's off-season tourism market. Through dialogue with local enterprises, the Beijing delegation gained an in-depth understanding of the needs of Malaysia's tourism industry, including improving the quality of international services, strengthening the construction of an international language environment, carrying out standardized training in service industries such as hotels, and providing payment facilitation measures for inbound tourists. In addition, the Beijing delegation also visited AirAsia's headquarters and had in-depth discussions on AirAsia's increased flight capacity, air and travel integration, advertising and promotion cooperation, and the establishment of a connection platform, so as to find new opportunities and open up new models for expanding inbound tourism in Beijing.
Malaysia people experience the hand-painted skills of "Peking Opera Face Painting" at the Beijing booth
According to data from the National Immigration Administration, from January to August 2024, 9.69 million people from ASEAN countries entered Chinese mainland, a year-on-year increase of 113.1%, and the reasons for entry were mainly tourism and leisure, conference and business; 680,000 Japanese citizens entered Chinese mainland, a year-on-year increase of 123%, and the reasons for entry were mostly conference business, sightseeing and leisure, family visits, etc.; Korea citizens entered Chinese mainland 1.587 million, a year-on-year increase of 142.1%, and the reasons for entry were also mainly for sightseeing, leisure, conference and business.
Source: Financial Times Client Reporter: Fang Hua Editor: Liu Nengjing
Email: [email protected]