SIEM REAP, September 14 – Tourism Malaysia is stepping up its international marketing efforts through a series of seminars held in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap. These seminars, packed with business-to-business (B2B) sessions and networking luncheons, aim to foster potential collaborations between Malaysian tourism industry players and their Cambodian counterparts. Running from August 7 to 12, 2023, the seminars brought together 80 Cambodian travel agents and local media in Phnom Penh City, as well as 35 Cambodian travel agents in Siem Reap Province.
These participants engaged with 14 Malaysian travel trade partners, including travel agents, hotels, resorts, and tourism product owners. Leading the Malaysian delegation was Ms. Zalina Ahmad, Deputy Director of International Promotions Division (Southeast Asia) at Tourism Malaysia. Among the participants were representatives from major entities like Malaysia Airlines, AirAsia, Lanmei Airlines Cambodia, AnCasa Hotels & Resorts, Grand Ion Delemen Hotel Genting Highlands, Holiday Inn Express & Suites Johor Bahru, ibis Hotel Kuala Lumpur City Centre, Mercure Kuala Lumpur Shaw Parade, Asia Delight Tours & Travel, Columbia Leisure, E Like Travel & Tours, GIT Tours & Travels, Harvest Vacations, and Marine Discovery Holidays.
The seminars also welcomed distinguished guests, including His Excellency Datuk Eldeen Husaini Mohd Hashim, the Malaysian Ambassador to Cambodia, and Chhay Sivlin, President of the Cambodia Association Travel Agents (CATA), during the Phnom Penh session. Dato’ Dr. Ammar Abd. Ghapar, Director-General of Tourism Malaysia, expressed his enthusiasm, stating, “We sincerely look forward to working closely with local travel agents in Cambodia and appreciate their continuous support in promoting Malaysia.
With more upcoming direct flights connecting Cambodia to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia is certainly the preferred choice of travel destination in this region.” “Moreover, Tourism Malaysia Marketing Representative in Cambodia, Ms. Pot Rany, is more than happy to assist and support any new travel package initiatives to bring in more Cambodian tourists to Malaysia. Hence, we hope to inspire and motivate our counterparts to confidently promote and sell Malaysia and thus succeed in their business in return.”
Malaysia’s target is to attract 16.1 million international tourist arrivals and generate RM 49.2 billion in tourism receipts this year. In 2022, Cambodian tourists recorded 39,823 arrivals in Malaysia, and this positive trend is expected to continue as 18,118 Cambodians registered in the first quarter of this year.
