AirBorneo, the airline owned by the Sarawak state government, has mapped out an expansion plan for its Asian service network, which will bring to life the tourism ministry’s ambition to make Sarawak the tourism gateway to Borneo island.
Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah, minister of tourism, creative industry & performing arts, Sarawak, shared that AirBorneo has Indonesia’s Jakarta, Thailand’s Bangkok, and South Korea’s Jeju on the cards.
The full-service carrier launched its first international service between Kuching and Singapore on July 22 this year.
Abdul Karim said the Kuching-Jeju connection made sense as Kuching is gearing up for a UNESCO Global Geopark designation come 2027, which would place it on par with Jeju, already a designated UNESCO Global Geopark since 2015.
“Furthermore, South Korea is a very good tourism source market. It is our top ninth market,” added the minister, who pointed to golf and education being strong magnets for inbound South Koreans.
Speaking at the PATA Travel Mart 2026 Knowledge Forum on August 18, Morshidi Fredrick, permanent secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Creative Industry & Performing Arts, Sarawak, stated that good air and land connectivity is crucial for the state to be seen as a tourism gateway.
Fredrick emphasised on the vastness of Borneo island, which is shared by several countries including Indonesia and Brunei, as well as Sabah, another Malaysian state.
He sees an opportunity for Sarawak to facilitate tourism access to all destinations in Borneo.
While AirBorneo facilitates international access into Sarawak, the Sarawak Pan Borneo Highway – commissioned by the Malaysian federal and Sarawak state governments and being progressively opened to the public now – enables travellers to “explore all parts of Sarawak by road”.
The Sarawak Pan Borneo Highway connects major towns, including Kuching, Sibu, Bintulu, and Miri, allowing travellers easy access via buses and cars, and to even enter Brunei, if they so wish, according to Fredrick.
