IPOH: A more comprehensive efforts are being carried out to market tourist products in Perak, especially in agro-tourism and archeology, said Menteri Besar, Ahmad Faizal Azumu.
He said the state government, together with Tourism Perak, were assessing strategies to optimise the two sectors.
“To attract more visitors, we have to look far and wide by highlighting attractions others than the Royal Belum and Lenggong Valley which had been listed as the Unesco World Heritage sites.
“The recognition given by the international body could be optimised by rethinking ways to promote the national heritage sites while giving attention to both the domestic and international markets,” he said in his speech at Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents’ (Matta) annual dinner held last night.
He said to achieve that, the existing tourism packages must be reviewed.
For instance, he said, a cultural exhibition could be created at Lenggong Valley to add value to the tourist spot and attract more visitors.
“Apart from the two sectors, several heritage buildings that have potentials to turn into new tourist products have also been identified,” he said.
Faizal said among the assets were Victoria Bridge and Ipoh Railway station which housed the Majestic Hotel, as well as other properties owned by the Railway Asset Corporation (RAC).
“Majestic Hotel, for example, has the potential to be a tourist attraction as many domestic and foreign visitors use the train services to get to Ipoh. It is sad to the building was abandoned and left to decay,” he said.
He said investors were also encouraged to build more hotels to accommodate the rising number of tourists visiting the state.
“It is among the plans to improve Perak’s status as a world-class tourist state.
“Stakeholders must work together to realise this dream and I am confident in gaining the support from Matta members, especially its state chapter in arranging tour packages to promote Perak and spur the growth of a sustainable and consistent tourism,” he added.
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