KUALA LUMPUR, 1 JANUARY 2020: Tourism Malaysia kicked off the highly anticipated Visit Malaysia 2020 (VM2020) Campaign on the first day of the year with a special reception at major entry points to welcome domestic and international tourists as a symbolic gesture indicating the commencement of the campaign.

Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture of Malaysia Datuk Mohamaddin bin Ketapi was at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) which was one of the venues chosen for the welcome reception. Similar welcome receptions were held concurrently at 22 entry points throughout the country as listed in the Attachment.

“Apart from welcoming tourists to Malaysia on the first day of 2020, the special reception is intended to spread the excitement of Visit Malaysia 2020 campaign,” said the minister to members of the press at the special welcoming ceremony.

The welcome reception was also made possible with the support provided by state governments and corporate agencies related to the tourism industry who joined in the celebration at the major entry points by providing full support and contributions in the preparation of the event as well as special tokens for tourists.

To spice up the celebratory mood, the first batch of international and domestic tourists arriving at all major entry points were greeted with cultural presentations from traditional dancers and also traditional music such as gamelan and sape. Tourists were presented with special tokens that represent Malaysia with delicious snack such as dodol and a special VM2020 scarf as a sign of Malaysian hospitality.

Malaysia is targeting 30 million tourist arrivals and RM100 billion in tourist receipts for 2020. Armed with the slogan “Visit Truly Asia Malaysia 2020”, the campaign promises colourful celebrations with an impressive line-up of special and exciting events throughout the year. The comprehensive list of events in 2020 can be obtained by visiting the official website for Visit Malaysia 2020 at http://vm2020.malaysia.travel/.

ENDS

For more media releases, media info and media features on Malaysia’s tourism industry, kindly visit the Media Centre of Tourism Malaysia’s website at http://www.tourism.gov.my/

MALAYSIA TOURISM PROMOTION BOARD OR TOURISM MALAYSIA is an agency under the Ministry of Tourism, Arts & Culture Malaysia. It focuses on the specific task of promoting Malaysia as a preferred tourism destination. Since its inception, it has emerged as a major player in the international tourism scene. In 2018, Malaysia registered 25.8 million tourist arrivals and RM84.1 billion tourist receipts, placing it among the major tourism destinations of the world.

For enquiries, please contact:
Media Unit
Muadz Samat
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muadz@tourism.gov.my
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