KUALA LUMPUR, 13 Nov 2015 – Tourism Malaysia is once again hosting the ASEAN Celebrity Explore Quest Malaysia 2015, which will see the participation of a total of 95 participants, comprising of celebrities, media, and tour agents from ten ASEAN countries.

Themed “Malaysia in My Heart”, the weeklong event, beginning from 13 to 21 November, combines exploration, corporate social responsibility, homestays, and photography competitions into one exciting race across some of Malaysia’s best tourist destinations.

This year, the race will go through three states, which are Kuala Lumpur, Perak, and Kedah. Participants will travel by bus from Kuala Lumpur to Perak, and then proceed to Langkawi via ferry while engaging in various exciting activities along the way!

The challenges and activities this year will place an emphasis on culture, people, nature and food attractions, in line with Tourism Malaysia’s efforts to promote its Malaysia Year of Festivals (MyFEST) 2015 campaign.

The race will also expose participating media and travel agents to some of the country’s best tourism products, which will help them to promote and sell Malaysia. Through their experiences, the media can provide valuable first-hand information to their consumers, while travel agents can develop new holiday packages to their respective markets.

The participation of ASEAN celebrities will also help raise the awareness of MyFEST 2015 and boost the promotion of the country’s tourist destinations through their social media following and their fan clubs. Some of this year’s celebrities feature actress and tv presenter, Ms. Sazzy Falak from Malaysia; actress Ms. Nina Iskandar from Brunei; model and singer Mr. Jacob Benedicto from the Philippines; radio deejay Ms. Aura Shai from Singapore; Miss South East Asia Tourism Ambassadress 2015, Ms. Yada Theppanom from Thailand; bestselling author Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Thach from Vietnam; Miss Myanmar International 2015 Ms. Emerald Nyein; actress Ms. Vicky Zainal from Indonesia; and actor, singer, model and presenter Mr. Yem Sam Onn from Cambodia.

In order to ensure the success of this programme, Tourism Malaysia has also forged a smart partnership with Malaysia Airlines as the official airline for this event, and it has also received support from various organisations such as Sunway Lagoon, Perbadanan Putrajaya, Perak Tourism Management Berhad and Langkawi Development Authority (LADA).

The ASEAN market remains as the largest contributor of tourist arrivals to Malaysia. In 2014, a total of 20.4 million tourists from ASEAN countries visited Malaysia, comprising 74.3% of our total arrivals of 27.4 million with tourist receipts amounting to RM46.3 billion or 64.3% of total tourist receipts of RM72 billion. For the first quarter of 2015, the ASEAN market recorded a decline of 6.2% compared to the same period in 2014.

For further information on ASEAN Celebrity Explore Quest Malaysia 2015, kindly contact Ms. Naimatul Farah Isa, the Assistant Director of International Promotion (Southeast Asia), Tourism Malaysia, at 603-8891 8279 or via email at naimatulfarah@tourism.gov.my.