KOTA KINABALU: Sabah can expect an upsurge in the number of tourists from China and India with the new visa-free entry policy for the two groups.
While there's no direct flight to Sabah from India, Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Christina Liew said air connectivity to Kuala Lumpur, Singapore and Brunei Darusallam would be gateways for Indian tourists to fly into the state.
"As Minister of (Sabah) Tourism, Culture and Environment, I welcome the government move to allow Chinese and Indian citizens to visit Malaysia without a tourist visa until Dec 31 next year.
"Thus, we hope to see an upward trend in visits from Indian and Chinese nationals next year," she said in a statement.
She said the timely move would augur well for the growth of tourist arrivals from the two countries, given the declaration of 2020 as Visit Malaysia Year (VM2020).
Quoting statistics from Sabah Tourism Board (STB), Liew said as of October this year, arrivals from China and India saw an increase at 3.1 percent and 19.3 percent respectively.
She urged tourism players in Sabah to take advantage of the government's offer to lure more tourists into the state in an effort to secure a slice of the tourism pie.
"STB will continue its marketing efforts vis-a-vis China to seek more MICE (Meeting, Incentive, Convention & Exhibition) business, and to grow Sabah's nature and adventure tourism.
"A delegation from the board will also attend SATTE - a trade show in Delhi - as a new initiative for the Indian market," she added.
Under the visa-free policy, tourists must be registered through electronic travel registration and information system.
The 15-day visa-free period cannot be extended and tourists must travel to Malaysia within three months.