Foreign tourist arrivals up by 20.4%

Malaysia recorded a 20.4% rise in foreign tourist arrivals in the first five months this year with a total of 16.94 million visitors compared to 14.07 million for the same period last year.

Singapore remains the biggest source of tourists with 8.34 million visitors, which is a 26.5 percent increase.

Indonesian tourists rose by 10.3% to 1.82 million. There were 1.81 million Chinese visitors, with a 38.8 percent increase.

“Thailand contributed 1.06 million visitors, a 5.2 per cent increase, while arrivals from India grew by 32 per cent to 664,811 visitors,” Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing said in a written parliamentary reply.

He said this in response to Teresa Kok (PH-Seputeh) who asked for the breakdown of foreign tourists to Malaysia.

Tiong said the numbers proved the effectiveness of government initiatives, including the Visa Liberalisation Plan, targeted support and incentives for industry players, and high-impact promotional campaigns.

“These efforts include digital promotions and strategic collaborations with online platforms and airlines, which have helped position Malaysia as a top tourism destination in the region.”

Tiong said the ministry is now working towards the Visit Malaysia 2026 (VM2026) campaign, with a target of 47 million foreign visitors.

“To achieve this, we will focus on key high-potential markets such as Central Asia, the Middle East, ASEAN, Europe and Oceania.”