KUCHING, 30 OCTOBER 2015: The Sarawak Mini Dive Expo 2015 is the first to be organized, from 30 October to 1 November at the new wing of the Boulevard Shopping Mall in Kuching, Sarawak. The expo, which showcased diving packages, diving equipment/merchandise, and dive courses, aims to promote Sarawak as a potential dive destination in Malaysia.

A total of 14 agencies and companies participated in the expo, which included dive operators, suppliers, travel agents, and government agencies.

In conjunction with the event, the Domestic Promotion Director, Mr. Iskandar Mirza Mohd Yusof, launched the ‘Experience Sarawak Best Packages Dekat Je’, which features 50 packages by 16 travel agents divided into several segmentations such as adventure & nature, city tours, culture & heritage, cycling and bike ride, sport tourism, volunteerism, Edu-tourism, Golfing and Diving.

It is noteworthy to mention that the production of the packages was in collaboration with Sarawak Tourism Board.

He lauded the move, saying, “Sarawak, being the largest state in Malaysia, is blessed with a rich diversity of tourism products…This rich diversity can lead to the development of many innovative and unique packages to suit every budget, interest, market and requirement.”

He added, “It is my hope that the private sector involved in tourism will continue to push the boundaries of tourism development to promote Sarawak in a fresh, new way.”

Tourism Malaysia’s State Director for Sarawak, Mr. Salahuddin Mohd Ariffin said, “We are very proud of Malaysia’s diving attractions, and we have taken great steps in preserving and promoting these dive sites to the world. This brochure will be useful in promoting Sarawak’s dive sites and highlight the many interesting facets of Sarawak as a holiday destination.”

As part of the promotional efforts by Tourism Malaysia to promote diving in Sarawak, a recent seminar and dive activity was organised on 19 – 21 August 2015 in Miri. The event was participated by local media, the Malaysia Scuba Diving Assocation (MSDA), Sarawak Forestry Corporation, PADI, Jabatan Laut Sarawak, JKKN Sarawak, local travel agents and Malaysia’s Tourism Ambassador, Mr. Clement Lee.

Last year, Sarawak recorded a total of 4.8 million visitor arrivals, comprising of 3 million international visitors and 1.8 million domestic visitors. Tourism receipts from that year came up to RM10.686 billion.

The top five international source markets for Sarawak in 2014 were Brunei (1.96 million visitors); Indonesia (547,158 visitors); Philippines (135,861 visitors); Singapore (49,059) and China (39,735)

Up to August 2015, Sarawak has received a total of 3.1 million visitors comprising of 57% domestic visitors and 43% international visitors. Sarawak’s target for 2015 is 5 million visitors.