As the 29th SEA Games and the 9th ASEAN Para Games are set to take place in Kuala Lumpur later this week, inbound agents are considering farther accommodation locations or shortening touring time in the destination for their Middle Eastern clients due to a lack of rooms in the capital city.
The biennial event this year coincides with the Middle East travel peak, with the latter running up to early September. Moreover, shopping is a key draw for Middle Eastern visitors to Kuala Lumpur during the current sale period (ending August 31).
Ally Bhoonee, executive director of World Avenues, said: “Middle East tourists are known to make last-minute bookings, as late as a week prior to arrival. If we cannot get rooms in Kuala Lumpur, we divert them to Penang or Langkawi first and make Kuala Lumpur the last stop before their departure.”
Saini Vermeulen, executive director, Within Earth Holidays, told TTG Asia: “When we fail to get rooms in the city, we put our guests out of the city centre such as in Petaling Jaya. They don’t mind as transportation comes to their doorstep and we still do the tours in the city, plus hotel rates are less expensive compared with the city centre. They save around 20 per cent on these packages.”
Likewise, Adam Kamal, CEO at Olympik Holidays, also diverts his Middle Eastern clients to accommodation in Selangor, Putrajaya and Cyberjaya when rooms in Kuala Lumpur are not available. The tour programme in the capital city remains unaffected.
Meanwhile, both Ally and Adam observed an overall decline in arrivals from the region this year, partly due to the economic downturn in the Middle East. Adam said: “Middle East tourists usually stay in five-star properties. This year we are seeing more demand for four-star deluxe properties. This lowers the package rate by approximately 20 per cent.”
