Kuching to host travel agents from China for networkings
KUCHING: Twenty selected travel agents from Guangzhou and Shenzhen, China will be in the city to do tourism product inspection from December 28 to January 1 as part of a promotion initiative for AirAsia’s direct Kuching- Shenzhen flight.
The five- day familiarisation trip will enable the Chinese agents to see and check for themselves the various Sarawak tourism products and also the various hotel properties while at the same time they will be given opportunities to do networking sessions with local travel partners.
These top China agents are selected from a list of more than 70 agents that turned up at the Sarawak Tourism Board ( STB) and AirAsia’s business sessions that were held in Guangzhou and Shenzhen on December 13 and 14 respectively.
The business sessions were conducted by STB with five Sarawak hoteliers and eight travel agents attending to propose their tour packages to the China travel operators.
Sarawak trade partners who participated at the two business sessions in Guangzhou and Shenzhen have expressed satisfaction on the outcome of the roadshow.
The opportunity to meet up with quality big time China travel agents was intended to share business opportunities available in packaging the Sarawak tourism products and also a networking platform to discuss business potentials.
Meanwhile, Assistant Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture Datuk Lee Kim Shin, who led the roadshow delegation together with STB chairman Datuk Abdul Wahab Aziz, expressed satisfaction on the outcome of the trip.
“The business sessions allowed us to meet more than 70 China’s agents and they are very enthusiastic about Sarawak as it
The business sessions allowed us to meet more than 70 China’s agents and they are very enthusiastic about Sarawak as it is seen as a new destination.
is seen as a new destination,” Lee said.
He pointed out that the proposed direct flight has given new opportunities for the industry given the strong business support from these China-based agents,
“We hope that it will turn a new chapter on China potential tourism market for Sarawak,” he added.
Lee was also optimistic that China’s huge tourism market will open up the travel and hospitality business in the state and bring in tourism-related investment opportunities to spur development in Sarawak.
“STB will continue to collaborate with AirAsia to tap the travel potential in South China especially now that we will have the direct flight and the need to sustain it,” he said.
He also called on industry partners to prepare for the influx of China tourists with the availability of the direct flight and he hoped that more direct flights will be planned in the future connecting Miri to China as well.
Meanwhile, tourism promotion for the proposed direct flight was extended to Kalimantan Barat where Indonesians are expected to transit in Kuching to catch the flight to South China.
STB acting chief executive officer Mary Wan Mering said the board had organised the Sarawak Travel Fair in Pontianak last month and the proposed direct flight to Shenzhen had received favourable acceptance from the Indonesians.
“It will be a double bonus to the state as the arrivals of Indonesians on transit to South China will augur well for tourism arrival into Sarawak.”
She acknowledged that air connectivity was crucial in getting tourists into the state.
“Without it, a double hurdle challenge is in for us to promote the destination in the market place,” she said and expressed her gratitude to AirAsia for being able to look into the state’s needs.
Datuk Lee Kim Shin, Assistant Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture