Malaysia expects 36 million tourists by 2020
Some 36 million tourists are expected to visit Malaysia by 2020, contributing around $53 billion to the economy, Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board chairman Datuk Seri Dr Ng Yen Yen said, according to The Star.
“A major portion of that revenue will come from the retail sector, as shopping is the second biggest contributor of tourist spending after accommodation, accounting for 38 per cent of the $19 billion spent by visitors in 2012,” she said.
Last year, Malaysia was ranked 10th in the world for the number of international tourists arrivals with 25 million visitors.
“This is remarkable compared to our population of 28 million. CNN also ranked Kuala Lumpur as the fourth best city for shopping behind New York, Tokyo and London.”
However, methods of counting tourists coming to Malaysia has drawn criticism in the past. For example, day trippers from Singapore to nearby Malaysian border towns are counted as tourists, even if they just come for an hour to fill their vehicle with cheaper gas. Official arrival numbers of Singaporean “tourists” to Malaysia in 2012 were given by Tourism Malaysia as 9.7 million, which is 40 per cent of total arrivals to Malaysia in 2012. But Singapore has just a population of 5.3 million. Also, frequent visa runners from Thailand are counted in the statistics, as well as labour migrants, which explains that Malaysia has slightly more official foreign arrivals than Thailand, but far less tourism revenue.
Some 36 million tourists are expected to visit Malaysia by 2020, contributing around $53 billion to the economy, Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board chairman Datuk Seri Dr Ng Yen Yen said, according to The Star. “A major portion of that revenue will come from the retail sector, as shopping is the second biggest contributor of tourist spending after accommodation, accounting for 38 per cent of the $19 billion spent by visitors in 2012,” she said. Last year, Malaysia was ranked 10th in the world for the number of international tourists arrivals with 25 million visitors. “This is remarkable compared to our...
Some 36 million tourists are expected to visit Malaysia by 2020, contributing around $53 billion to the economy, Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board chairman Datuk Seri Dr Ng Yen Yen said, according to The Star.
“A major portion of that revenue will come from the retail sector, as shopping is the second biggest contributor of tourist spending after accommodation, accounting for 38 per cent of the $19 billion spent by visitors in 2012,” she said.
Last year, Malaysia was ranked 10th in the world for the number of international tourists arrivals with 25 million visitors.
“This is remarkable compared to our population of 28 million. CNN also ranked Kuala Lumpur as the fourth best city for shopping behind New York, Tokyo and London.”
However, methods of counting tourists coming to Malaysia has drawn criticism in the past. For example, day trippers from Singapore to nearby Malaysian border towns are counted as tourists, even if they just come for an hour to fill their vehicle with cheaper gas. Official arrival numbers of Singaporean “tourists” to Malaysia in 2012 were given by Tourism Malaysia as 9.7 million, which is 40 per cent of total arrivals to Malaysia in 2012. But Singapore has just a population of 5.3 million. Also, frequent visa runners from Thailand are counted in the statistics, as well as labour migrants, which explains that Malaysia has slightly more official foreign arrivals than Thailand, but far less tourism revenue.
