Malaysia still attractive to tourists despite hot spell

JOHOR BARU: Malaysia is still attractive to foreign tourists, especially those from Asean countries, despite the current hot spell as there are cooler places to go to in Malaysia for them to visit, says a tour guide association leader.

Malaysia Tour Guides Association president Jimmy Leong said many foreign tourists from Indonesia, Vietnam and Singapore were coming here for their holidays despite the hot weather.

“Chinese tourists are also coming back to Malaysia, which is a good sign which can spur the growth of our local tourism industry. As these tourists come from the same region, they can adapt to the hot weather we are experiencing right now.

“The foreign tourists can go to cooler places such as Genting Highlands, Fraser’s Hill or Cameron Highlands,” he added.However, Leong warned that if the extremely hot weather continued, it could impact the tourism industry and its players, especially tour guides.

Leong, who is also Johor Tourist Guides Association (JTGA) president, said the heatwave would make it difficult for tour guides to carry out guided tours such as heritage walks in cities in the country as tourists coming from colder climate would prefer to stay indoors if the hot weather became too unbearable.

“I just got back from Penang after spending four days there and the weather is really hot over there.

“If the heatwave continues, it can cause a negative impact on our tourism industry,” he added.

Leong reminded tour guides to take care of their health as well as the tourists’ health during the hot weather.