GEORGE TOWN: Pahang claimed the top spot for overnight domestic tourists last year with 11 million visitors, vastly outranking other acclaimed states.
Penang only ranked 12th with 5.6 million such tourists, according to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM).
In second place was Selangor with 10.6 million, followed by Perak (10.4 million), Kuala Lumpur (10.1 million) and Johor (9.8 million).
The Domestic Tourism Survey 2025 found that domestic visitor numbers rose nationally by 11.5% to 290.1 million, from 260.1 million in 2024.
Domestic tourism expenditure increased 13.6% to RM121.3bil while the average stay rose from 2.49 nights to 2.56 nights.
Chief Statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said growth was driven by festive travel, school holidays, state tourism campaigns, cultural festivals, concerts, exhibitions, sporting events and Malaysia’s hosting of Asean meetings.
Overall, Pahang recorded 23.2 million domestic visitors. The east coast state is home to Cameron Highlands and Genting Highlands which both have huge tourism appeal.
The annual nationwide household survey estimates domestic tourism activity, including visitor numbers, travel patterns, expenditure and traveller profiles, using internationally recognised tourism statistical standards.
Tourism Malaysia’s Paid Accommodation Survey showed that hotel guests nationwide rose by 4.2% to 104.35 million in 2025.
Kuala Lumpur recorded the most hotel guests at 23.74 million, followed by Pahang (12.96 million), Johor (10.63 million), Selangor (9.91 million), Sarawak (6.98 million) and Penang (8.77 million).
Penang’s total comprised 5.29 million domestic guests and 3.47 million international guests.
The national hotel occupancy rate rose to 56.8%, with Pahang recording 76.3% and Penang 58.6%.
