Sabah approaches 3M visitor goal with new AirAsia flights from Shantou and Kaohsiung, boosting tourism.

Sabah is on track to meet its goal of 3 million visitor arrivals, thanks to two new AirAsia flights that began this November, providing direct services from Shantou on the 16th and from Kaohsiung on the 17th to Kota Kinabalu.

The inaugural flights from Shantou and Kaohsiung landed successfully at Kota Kinabalu International Airport, welcomed by the traditional water salute ceremony. With Shantou now linked, it becomes the ninth Chinese city to offer direct flights to Kota Kinabalu, joining others like Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Beijing. This route will operate thrice weekly, increasing the total direct flights from China to Kota Kinabalu to 55 per week.

AirAsia also initiated a new route from Kaohsiung, marking it as the second Taiwanese city after Taipei to establish a direct connection to Sabah, enhancing travel options for Southern Taiwanese regions including Tainan and Pingtung.

“The launch of Shantou flight will potentially attract more tourists from neighbouring cities as well, such as Chaozhou, Huizhou, Meizhou, Xiamen, Shanwei, and Quanzhou, which have a combined population of over 31.4 million in Southern China,” she said.

Datuk Seri Panglima Christina Liew, Minister of Tourism, Culture, and Environment, expressed gratitude to AirAsia for their ongoing collaboration, which has significantly contributed to making Sabah a more accessible destination for international tourists.

In July, Sabah solidified a five-year strategic partnership with AirAsia aimed at bolstering the local tourism sector. This alliance seeks to transform Kota Kinabalu International Airport into a key regional aviation hub.

Dato’ Captain Fareh Mazputra, Managing Director of AirAsia Malaysia, commented on the new connections, emphasizing the importance of these routes in promoting tourism and cultural exchange between the nations, supported by AirAsia’s extensive network and initiatives such as visa-free travel.

Dato’ Captain Fareh Mazputra, Managing Director of AirAsia Malaysia said: “We are thrilled to continuously contribute to the tourism growth in Kota Kinabalu, our second-largest hub in Malaysia. These new routes allow us to fly more guests between both nations, leveraging the visa-free initiative by the government and AirAsia’s vast network providing opportunities for Chinese travellers to explore all that Kota Kinabalu has to offer. As an airline with the biggest market share in Sabah, we look forward to supporting the state’s tourism growth and playing our role in helping STB to achieve its vision of reaching three million visitors by the end of this year.”

Julinus Jeffery Jimit, CEO of the Sabah Tourism Board, mentioned that Sabah’s diverse natural and cultural attributes offer a wide range of travel experiences to its visitors.

“Increasing accessibility to Sabah supports our goal of making tourism a key driver of success in the Sabah Maju Jaya plan. At the same time, this aligns with our efforts to gear up towards Visit Malaysia Year, set to take place in 2026,” said Julinus.

The post Sabah Nears 3 Million Tourist Target With New AirAsia Flights From Shantou And Kaohsiung appeared first on Travel And Tour World.