PETALING JAYA: For Charis Chiang En-Hui, there is an additional perk to her frequent visits to see her family in her hometown of Sungai Petani, Kedah.
“I tend to spend more on food in Kedah; it’s cheaper than in KL,” said the association manager who is now based in the capital city.
Chiang, 23, said she often travels between Kuala Lumpur and Kedah, saying that family visits remain the main reason for returning home.
However, she often combines her trips with shopping and food outings.
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“When travelling to meet family and friends, I tend to do a little bit of shopping as well,” she said.
“Usually, I would buy local delicacies or products that are more difficult to get in Kuala Lumpur.”
Chiang is among the many Malaysians who are boosting domestic tourism with their frequent travel home to see their loved ones.
The Statistics Department announced in a statement dated Sept 23 that Malaysia’s domestic tourism recorded 76.9 million visitors and generated RM32.8bil in expenditure during the second quarter of the year.
“Visiting relatives and friends remained the predominant reason for domestic travel, accounting for 44.1% of total domestic visitors,” it said.
Shopping (21.6%) is the second reason for domestic travel.
Marketing executive Aisyah Ahmad, 32, works in Kuala Lumpur and returns to Bidor, Perak, for short trips of about two or three days every month.
She would stay longer during festive seasons.
Aisyah said she would often buy daily necessities, clothing and groceries during her visits.
Clothes, she said, were cheaper in Bidor, where she could buy several pieces for less than RM30, compared with paying RM30 to RM50 for a single item in Kuala Lumpur. She would buy her baju raya for about RM50 in Bidor.
She also prefers buying groceries in Bidor because fresh produce is more readily available and often sold directly by local growers, she said.
As for digital marketing executive Leong Shu Yin, shopping is rarely a priority when she returns to Ipoh.
“I don’t really shop much when I return to my hometown, as I choose to spend time with family and friends. If I want to shop, I will just do it during the weekend when I’m in Kuala Lumpur.”
“Every time I go back, I look for my comfort food and spend more on it or just window shop at the mall,” said Leong, 27.
