PETALING JAYA • Malaysia's tourism industry has called for a controlled travel itinerary throughout the country rather than just a travel bubble in Langkawi, to allow for a more effective and balanced recovery of the tourism sector.

Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (Matta) president Tan Kok Liang said that with a controlled travel or fixed itinerary, fully vaccinated travellers can choose local tourism destinations that have achieved herd immunity.

"This is a more effective recovery strategy as it will allow more tourism destinations in Penang, Terengganu, Pahang, Melaka, Sabah and Sarawak to open up in tandem with Langkawi.

"However, Matta welcomes the first move for the travel bubble in Langkawi as it is better than nothing," he said on Friday.

Langkawi, in the state of Kedah, will open to locals under a travel bubble plan from Sept 16, Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said in a statement on Thursday, adding that other destinations will be allowed to operate when the locality's vaccination rate hits 80 per cent.

Mr Tan noted that in Langkawi, a controlled travel itinerary would also be applicable as people would still be at risk of getting infected with Covid-19 without a proper standard operating procedure.

Kedah/Perlis Malaysian Association of Hoteliers chairman Eugene Dass said it was anticipating growth of 20 per cent in occupancy rate, which is expected to pick up after next month if the country achieves 80 per cent vaccine coverage.

He believes the Langkawi travel bubble would be "very domestically driven" since the country is still not open for interstate travel.

Meanwhile, local airlines are getting ready to increase the frequency of their services to Langkawi in anticipation of the reopening of the tourism sector there on Sept 16.

Malaysia Aviation Group chief executive Izham Ismail said Malaysia Airlines welcomed the government's announcement on the activation of the Langkawi travel bubble.

He added that this would be a starting point to reviving domestic tourism for the fully vaccinated. "Currently, Malaysia Airlines operates four times daily to Langkawi, and will adjust capacity to meet demand," he said on Friday.

In conjunction with the reopening and Malaysia Day, which also falls on Sept 16, he said Malaysia Airlines is offering tickets for as low as RM89 (S$28.80) for all-in fare, while its tour operating arm, MHholidays, is also offering bundled flight and hotel packages with up to 50 per cent discounts.

Firefly Airlines marketing and communications head Koo Kee Wai said the airline would be gradually ramping up flights to Langkawi. "We are ready with full compliance to the SOP (standard operating procedure), with the recent launch of our Covid-19 testing, travel insurance with Covid-19 coverage, and with all our pilots and cabin crew fully vaccinated," he said.

AirAsia Malaysia chief executive Riad Asmat said Malaysians are eager to resume travelling and Langkawi, famed for its world-class facilities, pristine beaches, family-friendly atmosphere and local cuisine, is by far one of the top domestic destinations.

"The government's decision to commence this travel bubble bodes well for the recovery of Langkawi's tourism industry, and we look forward to working closely with the government, Langkawi Development Authority, as well as Tourism Malaysia, to support the revival of the tourism sector.

"We are working on a few campaigns to revitalise tourism in Langkawi with some very attractive deals to be announced soon," he added.

THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK