PETALING JAYA, May 31 — Tourists from China are expected to return to Malaysia during the peak holiday season in August and September.

Malaysia-Chinese Tourism Association president Paul Paw said he was confident that the trend of Chinese tourist arrivals would reach its peak in the last quarter of the year.

Paw said due to the disappearance of the Malaysia Airlines MH370 jet and the spate of kidnappings off Sabah involving its citizens, tourist arrivals from China in Malaysia had decreased by almost 40 per cent.

“There was a healthy arrival of tourists from China in the last five years when there was at least a 10 per cent increase each year,” said Paw. 

“In 2012, Malaysia recorded 1.2 million tourist arrivals and last year, there were 1.4 million.”

Tourists from China usually prefer eco-tourism activities, heritage buildings, sightseeing and shopping which they are able to get in Malaysia.

Paw said since March there had been a large number of cancellations on flights and bookings on hotels and restaurants, which had affected the tourism industry.

He said due to that, the association had set a lower target for tourist arrivals by the end of this year.

“It would be good if we get about 500,000 tourists from China by end of the year,” said Paw.

“We understand that the Chinese are emotionally affected by the incidents (MH370 and Sabah kidnappings) and many have decided to cancel their bookings up to August. But we are confident we can woo them back.”

China accounts for 12 per cent of international tourists in Malaysia. Chinese tourists spend an average of RM2,800 each in Malaysia and make up the third-largest group after Singapore and Indonesia.

Paw said the association was hopeful that the Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board would resume its promotion campaigns following Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s visit to China.

He said after the MH370 incident, the tourism board had reduced the number of promotions in China.

Paw also said the association was planning to reach out to smaller cities in China to promote Malaysia.

“China is a big country and all this while, we have been focusing only on the major cities. It is time we ventured into the other provinces,” he said.

Paw said from the association’s observations, word of mouth was the most effective advertising in China.

“Most of the tourists from China choose their travel destinations and their tour company based on recommendations from those they know. So, all we need to do is to provide a good experience to all the tourists to capture potential tourists,” he said.