The Star Malaysia

MATTA Fair starts today

Visitors can preview and ‘travel’ to hot spots with the new eMATTA app

- By HANIS ZAINAL haniszaina­l@thestar.com.my

Visitors can preview and ‘travel’ to hot spots with new eMATTA app.

KUALA LUMPUR: Imagine swimming among manta rays and turtles in the seas off Hawaii or watching the mystical colours of the aurora borealis in the Lapland region of Finland – all from the halls of the Putra World Trade Centre (PWTC).

Visitors to this weekend’s MATTA Fair March 2018 will be able to preview these attractive travel destinatio­ns via the eMATTA augmented reality (AR) mobile app.

Malaysian Associatio­n of Tour and Travel Agents ( MATTA) president Datuk Tan Kok Liang said this was the first time that AR would be featured during the fair.

“The app was developed specially for the MATTA Fair, so that there is an added interactiv­e aspect to the promotion for the travel products sold,” he said.

He said the app also featured a game, Protect the Durian, which could be played by visitors to the fair to win attractive prizes.

Visitors, added Tan, would be spoiled for choice as this weekend’s fair would be the biggest in its 27-year history, featuring over 1,350 booths.

He said those who bought internatio­nal travel packages would have a chance to win prizes such as a return Business Class flight ticket to London courtesy of Malaysia Airlines (MAS), the fair’s official airline.

Domestic air tickets, he said, would also be offered as prizes for the domestic Buyers’ Contest, along with hotel and resort vouchers.

“Visitors can enter the MATTA Fair Buyers’ Contest with a minimum purchase of RM300 on an internatio­nal travel package or RM100 for a domestic travel package,” he added.

Tan also urged the public to visit the fair instead of looking for packages online as there had been cases of unlicensed travel agencies taking advantage of the event to cheat people.

“During the fair, these unscrupulo­us travel agents will place online adverts claiming MATTA Fair’s special discounts but customers who buy from them are unprotecte­d as they are unlicensed.

“If you come and buy at the MATTA Fair, at least we can guarantee that they are licensed,” he told reporters at PWTC here yesterday.

Also present were MAS chief commercial officer Arved von zur Muehlen, Japan National Tourism Organisati­on Kuala Lumpur office executive director Chiemi Maruyama and Royal Caribbean Cruise Ltd Southeast

Asia sales head Josh Wen.

Visitors are encouraged to take public transport to the PWTC, with those taking the LRT having the chance to redeem cash vouchers at the Sunway Putra Mall’s promotion booth at the station.

Grab Malaysia will also be offering RM4 off for two rides to and from PWTC for the first 3,500 passengers daily using the promo code GRABMATTA1­8 during the fair.

MATTA Fair will be held at PWTC from today to Sunday.

Open from 10am to 9pm, admission is RM4 per person daily and free for children below 12.

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 ??  ?? All systems go: This year’s fair will be the biggest in MATTA’s 27-year history, says Tan (second from left). With him are (from left) MATTA CEO Phua Tai Neng, Star Media Group Berhad assistant GM Advertisin­g Sales and Business Developmen­t
K.C. Tan,...
All systems go: This year’s fair will be the biggest in MATTA’s 27-year history, says Tan (second from left). With him are (from left) MATTA CEO Phua Tai Neng, Star Media Group Berhad assistant GM Advertisin­g Sales and Business Developmen­t K.C. Tan,...
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