DUBAI: Sabah Tourism Board (STB), along with five local travel agents, are set to showcase Sabah as one of Malaysia's hidden gems at the 2022 Arabian Travel Market in Dubai.
On Sunday, tourism key players met with potential buyers in a Business-to-Business (B2B) session to promote Sabah as a preferred destination in an effort to penetrate the Middle Eastern market.
Organised by the Solidarity Association for Travel and Tours Agency Malaysia (Saftta), the engagement was launched by Tourism, Arts, and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri.
Sabah Tourism Board Chief Executive Officer, Noredah Othman said the Middle East is Sabah’s emerging market, hence the B2B session is timely and necessary now that travel activities are returning to normal.
“Sabah can be an eye-opening destination for our Middle Eastern visitors, from its friendly people and rich culture to its breath-taking nature, wildlife, and cuisine. We have a wide variety of unique experiences for tourists to choose from.
“We, at Sabah Tourism Board, have consistently maintained our commitment and aggressiveness in promoting tourism activities and products to the foreign market, especially during the pandemic.
“We anticipate an influx of Middle Eastern tourists to Malaysia and to the state. We hope that this will boost our tourism industry even more. All stakeholders must work together to achieve this,” she said.
The five local travel agents participating in the Saftta B2B session are Fun Holiday Tours and Travel, Borneo Wakid Adventures, i-world Travel and Tours, Exotic Asian Explorer (Borneo), and AiTravel.
