KOTA KINABALU: The next Sabah government must gain the confidence of travellers including offering them incentives to visit here for their holidays, says the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA). MATTA president Datuk Tan Kok Liang said travelling to Sabah means higher costs due to air transportation for those in the peninsula compared with travelling to popular spots like Penang and Langkawi. “If the international borders are not opened (yet), the most important thing is to win travellers’ confidence which includes providing stringent health and safety protocols. In his speech at the event, Tan said the flights (domestic and international) frequency into Sabah at present have dropped to 110 flights with 18,500 seat occupancy per week, from pre-Covid days of 660 weekly flights with 110,771 seat capacity. The domestic travel stimulus is a financial support to Sabah-based tour operators where they can claim RM50 for each confirmed tourist under a minimum three-day, two-night package in Sabah.

Source: The Star September 17, 2020 07:18 UTC