SEPANG: Domestic and international tourists arriving at both terminals of Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) received a pleasant surprise when they were greeted with festive performances and given free Hari Raya goodies by Tourism Malaysia.
The event saw thousands of goodie bags filled with traditional Raya delicacies like lemang and dodol handed out by Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry secretary-general Datuk Shaharuddin Abu Sohot as they arrived at the terminals’ arrival halls.
Traditional cultural performances, such as Dikir Puteri, were also held to provide tourists with a warm welcome to the country on Tuesday (April 1).
Visit Malaysia 2026 (VM2026) campaign mascots Wira and Manja also joined in the reception, charming visitors and their children with friendly hugs.
Preparation sessions of dodol and lemang were also on display for tourists as a demonstration of traditional Hari Raya Adilfitri culture.
“This welcome was meant to introduce international and local tourists to the culture and heritage of Adilfitri festivities and to showcase Malaysia as a hub for these.
“We hope to display our country’s rich traditions and harmonious multicultural society to more tourists,” Shaharuddin told a press conference at the one-day event, adding that this was part of VM2026.
He added that over 12,000 goodie bags were handed out in total at KLIA Terminal 1 and Terminal 2, as well as at the Penang International Airport, Kota Kinabalu International Airport in Sabah, and Kuching International Airport in Sarawak on Tuesday.
He was joined by Tourism Malaysia chairman Datuk Dr Yasmin Mahmood and its director-general Manoharan Periasamy.
Tourism Malaysia also revealed that Malaysia saw a massive 54.4% surge in visitor arrivals in January, reaching 3.8 million visitors compared to the same period last year and a 24.4% increase from the same period in pre-pandemic 2019.
