|
|
|
Adlin (second left), Praveen (second right) and Menon
|
29th May, 2007
KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Tourism Board (STB) will encourage airline operators such as Malaysia Airlines and others to form direct airline linkages between India and Sabah.
Speaking to reporters yesterday STB chairman Tengku Datuk Seri Zainal Adlin said with a direct link more Indian travellers would be able to make their way to Sabah directly without having to fly to the national capital.
Presently, travellers from India would have to go on transit at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) before connecting through a flight to Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA).
“We have good relations with MAS, Air Asia and other airlines. We have got to make it happen. It will make travelling to Sabah more convenient,” said Adlin who earlier disclosed that Sabah would host a Travel Agents Federation of India (TAFI) conference to be held here from Sept 6-9 this year.
Adlin said that the tourism board was mindful that India and China were potential tourism markers for Sabah.
It was revealed during the press conference that Malaysia received some 300,000 Indian visitors in 2006, and that it is expecting 400,000 Indian tourist arrivals into the country this year.
Some 70 percent of these are expected to come to Sabah, especially with the introduction of direct flights from India to Sabah.
Adlin was also asked what the STB would do to promote India to Sabahans, as airline operators would want both incoming and outgoing flights to and from India to Sabah to have enough passenger loads before it would even consider introducing the route.
To this, he replied that STB would also try to promote India to Sabahans, and that there are many exciting places in India for locals to see.
At the same time, he also stressed that through the installation of the new route, the airline operator need not only concentrate on the Sabahan market but also on the whole BIMP-EAGA region, which comprised Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Philippines and Malaysia.
“There are 55 million people in this region and they could use Sabah as a link to get to India. We are not just targeting Sabah but the whole BIMP-EAGA to go to India. There is a huge potential for both sides (India and Sabah),” he said.
Adlin said the upcoming conference would see the beginning of an economic collaboration between the State and India, especially with regards to tourism.
Meanwhile, TAFI president, Praveen Chugh concurred with Adlin’s opinion on the formation of a direct air link from his country to Sabah.
“It would be wonderful if we have direct flights from India to Kota Kinabalu and back. If this is done, we will do our best to get the support of our government as our mission is to have a large number of visitors to our country and vice versa,” he said.
Once there is direct air connection between Sabah and India, he said that TAFI would endeavour to bring 70 percent Indian tourists here. At the same time, Sabah is also expected to bring in 20 percent of tourists from here to India.
He added that India has been attracting a lot of foreign airline operators due to its open sky policy and that various foreign tourism boards have set up their offices in India to promote their respective countries.
Some nine billion Indians travelled abroad last year, he said.
“We are expecting a 34 percent growth in this respect, especially with the coming in of more airlines in our country,” he said.
As for the conference, Praveen said that some 800 to 1000 delegates comprising tour operators, domestic airline operators and other stakeholders in the Indian tourism industry would be attending.
“It would be a great opportunity for Sabah to attract investors,” he said.
He added that TAFI has chosen Sabah for the event due to the aggressive promotional activities by the Malaysia Tourism Board in the country.
Aside from that, he said, most Indians have already visited Langkawi, Kuala Lumpur and Genting Highlands and that they wanted a fresh venue for the event.
“Moreover, Sabah is not a city alone or just another sea beach. It offers variety – adventures, both soft and hard,” he said.
Present at the conference yesterday were Sutera Harbour Resort chief operating officer, Praba Menon; Immediate Past President of TAFI, Captain Promod Kohli; and Tourism Malaysia Sabah director, Iskandar Mirza.
|
