SUDIPTA DEV – Mumbai
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| Manoharan Periasamy |
Tourism Malaysia is now focusing on highlighting and showcasing many offbeat destinations in the Indian market, most of them being in eastern Malaysia. A majority of the destinations are eco tourism locations and are perfect for both soft and hard adventure activities. “There are some destinations in west Malaysia as well like Taman Negara, but most of these eco tourism locations are concentrated on eastern part of the country. The east coast mostly comprises of islands where diving and snorkelling are key activities, while regions like Sabah and Sarawak see a lot of adventure activities,” said Manoharan Periasamy, director, Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board. The list of activities for an experiential vacation in Malaysia is long and diversified – from staying in a long house in Sarawak to kayaking in Kinabatangan river to exploring the Mulu Caves or diving in Sipadan.
Acknowledging that the Indian market is not familiar with some of the products/destinations, Periasamy added, “Ezeego has taken a lead to showcase these offbeat destinations by targeting the travel trade through their distribution channel (B2B), as well targeting the consumers directly. In terms of B2C the target segment is the evolved traveller who has been there done that. This is purely an FIT segment, who want to explore experiential holidays, they want to be a part of the destination, rather than just sightseeing. They want to be in a participative holiday.”
According to Periasamy, Tourism Malaysia is not expecting immediate results, “We are not looking at planeloads of people going to these destinations but it will evolve and people would know that Malaysia has a variety of products/tourist destinations to offer.” He points out that these destinations also have something for everyone – for all age groups, “The bouquet of offers is a variety and Malaysia is always known as a family destination. But at the same time to tap the evolved travellers these are the products that we will showcase and promote to the segment.”
