Malaysia Lures MoreTourists From India, Pakistan

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 13, (Bernama) -- Tourism Malaysia is mounting a 10-day sales mission to India and Pakistan from Tuesday as the Southeast Asian country eyes more tourists from South Asia. Led by Tourism Malaysia acting director-gereral Azizan Noordin, the Feb 14-23 mission will travel to Ahmadebad, Bangalore, Mumbai and New Delhi in India, and Karachi in Pakistan. The tourism promotion agency said that Malaysia was targetting 720,000 tourists from India and 70,000 from Pakistan for 2012. "Among the objectives of the mission are to strengthen Malaysia's standing as a premier travel destination and increase tourist arrivals from the South Asia market. "It will also provide Malaysia's tourism industry players the opportunity to develop and strengthen cooperation with their Indian and Pakistani counterparts," Tourism Malaysia said in a statement Monday. The sales mission comprises tour operators, hoteliers, state tourism agencies, Tourism Malaysia said, adding that the focus market segments for South Asia were families, first-time travellers, youths and repeat travellers. It said the delegation would highlight new and innovative tourism products such as the 1Malaysia Contemporary Art Tourism Festival and 1Malaysia International Shoe Festival besides promoting Malaysia as a second home and business tourism destination. Tourism Malaysia launched its new television commercial campaign for the South Asia market in November 2011, showcasing the country as a high-end holiday destination and focusing on luxury and premium products. In line with the televisyen campaign, Tourism Malaysia will continue to promote the country's premium destinations through the tagline "Every Dream Needs a Destination", the statement said. Last year, 693,056 tourists from India and 73,046 from Pakistan visited Malaysia. -- BERNAMA