PETALING JAYA: Travellers remain cautious even though domestic tourism is allowed for those who are fully vaccinated since Aug 10.

       The tourism industry players said concerns to go on a trip were apparent owing to the new Covid-19 variants and high daily cases.

       Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH) chief executive officer Yap Lip Seng said while there had been increased interest in the advance purchase of hotel deals, in general the sentiments on the ground were not encouraging.

       “The public is still cautious.

       “Interstate travel is still restricted and the industry needs the main market source of travellers from Kuala Lumpur and Selangor, which at the moment are still in Phase One of the National Recovery Plan,” he said yesterday.

       While reopening helps in the economic sense, he said employers needed to protect employees’ safety, and called for vaccination in some states to be sped up.

       “From feedback, almost half of our member hotels have vaccinated their staff with certain states higher than the others.

       “Perak, Kedah, except in Langkawi, Melaka, Johor, the east coast states and Sabah are still slow,” he added.

       On Aug 8, the government announced that tourism activities involving homestays and hotels within the same state under Phase Two and above of the NRP are allowed for those fully vaccinated.

       As of yesterday, the Phase Two states include Penang, Perak, Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang and Sabah while the Phase Three states are Perlis, Sarawak and Labuan.

       Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) secretary-general Nigel Wong said the industry remains “cautiously optimistic” as many tour operators and agencies nationwide have diversified to make ends meet or temporarily suspended businesses.

       “We anticipate that many have also permanently closed. We think more promotions will run once safe destinations open and travel restrictions are further loosened,” he said.

       Wong noted that the bulk of domestic tourists come from the Greater Klang Valley area.

       “Domestic tourism will only pick up in earnest when travel restrictions for residents in this area are relaxed or lifted altogether.”

       Weighing in, Malaysia Tourism Council (MTC) president Uzaidi Udanis said not much was happening even with domestic tourism allowed.

       “The impact of the announcement would not be seen so fast as it would take some time for people to feel confident to travel again,” he said.

       Uzaidi, who also heads the Malaysian Inbound Tourism Association, lauded the government’s plan to turn Langkawi into a pilot project for the tourism bubble before it reopens the country.

       “It’s a good start provided we have a comprehensive system for this tourism bubble, on what the people can or cannot do, expect, plan and look forward to,” he added.Malaysia Budget & Business Hotel Association deputy president Dr Sri Ganesh Michiel agreed that travellers’ confidence was still low while operators were also worried about the promised allocations and aid in case of a government change.

       He said the industry would not be the same anymore even when fully open with the normalisation of online travel agencies and Airbnb residences during the lockdown.

       “Other than opening tourism, the government should handle these industry threats first to ensure a level playing field for all,” he added.