China and Malaysia tourism and culture thrive in 50th year of ties

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Malaysia, ushering in a new high point in cultural and tourism cooperation. Various cultural and tourism activities have been held in both countries, promoting deeper collaboration and development in these fields.

The first "Nihao! China" travel trade show had its grand opening on June 14 in Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia. Meanwhile, a Chinese and Malaysian food festival was also launched in Beijing in June and will run until the end of August.

Since the implementation of a mutual visa-free policy between China and Malaysia in December last year, Chinese tourists have shown a growing enthusiasm for traveling to Malaysia. According to data from several online travel platforms, Malaysia remains a popular outbound destination for Chinese tourists, ranking among the top three destinations for summer travel.

The Malaysian tourism market is showing new trends this year. Han Jie, chairman of CYTS Aoyou Travel, said that in the past, the traditional "Singapore-Malaysia-Thailand" routes mainly attracted senior tourists. Now, more and more younger tourists are turning to independent travel and customized tours, focusing on diving and vacationing along the routes. Popular vacation spots have also expanded from the traditional destinations of Kuala Lumpur and Malacca to Semporna, Penang, and Redang Island.

At the Chinese and Malaysian food festival held in Beijing, many young consumers are seen enjoying various Malaysian durian desserts. Durian, dubbed the king of fruit, has become a new attractive point for some young Chinese to travel to Malaysia. Travel platforms have also launched durian-themed tours to Malaysia during the harvest season, where tourists can visit local durian orchards to pick and taste different varieties.

In 2023, Malaysia received around 1.4 million Chinese tourists, making Chinese tourists one of the top six inbound tourist groups to the country. Malaysia is actively formulating strategies to achieve the target of attracting over 5 million Chinese tourists by 2024.