HAZE NOT A PROBLEM ?

To say that the worsening of the haze situation as the smog moves north in Malaysia will not affect tourism arrival is an understatement.  Major inbound travel agencies in Kuala Lumpur had said there had been no cancellations or postponements in bookings so far.

The Air Pollutant Index (API), Malaysia’s version of the Pollutant Standards Index, hit critical levels over the weekend, prompting Prime Minister Najib to declare a state of emergency in Muar and Ledang in Johor on Sunday after API readings crossed 750, according to local newspaper.

Most inbound agents are saying that “Forward bookings from the Indian market are still coming in for Diwali and the year-end winter holiday season.”.

 “There are no cancellations because of the haze. However, we are keeping our partner consultants informed of the situation. There are still bookings coming in until July 10,  after which movement is slow during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan. Post-Eid bookings are still coming in.

“We are running tours as normal and these are mainly to Kuala Lumpur, Sunway Lagoon Theme Park, Resorts World Genting, Langkawi and Penang.”

Diethelm Travel Malaysia, which handles traffic from the European inbound market, revealed that tours were running as usual on the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia. “However, we are receiving fewer forward bookings from Europe for July and August,” they observed.

Malaysia Airlines yesterday issued a press statement warning passengers of possible last-minute cancellations and retimings due to the “current haze situation which had deteriorated in parts of Malaysia over the last few days”.

It further stated that specific stations were under close watch for possible closure or interruptions, namely Kuantan’s Sultan Ahmad Shah Airport, Kota Baru’s Sultan Ismail Petra Airport, Kuala Terengganu’s Sultan Mahmud Airport, Kuala Lumpur International Airport and Kota Kinabalu International Airport.

WHAT ABOUT MALACCA AIRPORT ?

Continuous efforts are being carried out to increase flights into and out of Johor Bharu.

Firefly will introduce weekly scheduled service between Johor and Pekanbaru in Indonesia through a special promotion from Aug 1, 2013 to July 31, 2014 at the three-day 13th Malaysia International Travel Mart 2013 at Plaza Grand Sentosa in Johor Bahru.

 

Firefly's chief executive officer Ignatius Ong said the airline was targeting both business and leisure travellers out of Johor Baharu.

 

"We intend to provide Johorians a smarter travel option, especially with Hari Raya just around the corner. Complementing the direct access is the convenient travel time into both cities at reasonable rates and excellent customer service," he said in a statement, here, Thursday.

 

Firefly will use its ATR 72-500 turbo prop aircraft, which has a seating capacity of 72 on this route.

 

This is Firefly's first international turboprop operation out of Johor with the aim of bringing Malaysians and Indonesians closer, whether for the purpose of business or leisure.

 

This service will be available four times a week, departing from Johor at 10.20am and arriving at Pekanbaru at 10.40am. The return flight leaves Pekanbaru at 11.00am and arrives in Johor at 1.20pm.

If this flight schedule becomes workable for Johor Bahru it should also work for the recently refurbished airport of Malacca. In fact it should work out well for Malacca as it is the closest to Pekan Baru and Dumai. Malacca can be a gateaway from tourism coming from the islands of Riau, Sumatera.

 

ALL TALK BUT NO ACTION

In April 1999, ASEAN adopted a “zero-burning” policy and urged all Member Countries to implement the necessary laws and regulations to enforce this major decision. Following this, ASEAN convened a number of dialogue sessions with plantation companies as part of the effort to promote the zero burning policy among plantation owners and timber concessionaires. These dialogue sessions sought to inform and raise awareness on zero burning practices and techniques among plantation companies, and establish a regular forum in sustaining the dialogue sessions with plantation companies. ASEAN plans to organise more of such dialogue sessions regularly to further raise awareness and share experience on zero burning practices.

ASEAN has published the Guidelines for the Implementation of the ASEAN Policy on Zero Burning, and the Guidelines for the Implementation of Controlled Burning Practices. A Workshop on the Guidelines for the Implementation of the ASEAN Policy on Zero Burning was conducted in July 2004 in Kuala Rompin, Malaysia. Plantation companies, timber concessionaires, relevant associations from Malaysia and Indonesia, international organisations, representatives from ASEAN Member Countries and ASEAN Secretariat, participated in the workshop.

A second workshop was held in Kuala Rompin, Pahang, Malaysia on 18-20 July 2006 to promote the ASEAN Policy on Zero Burning and the implementation of zero burning techniques among practitioners in plantation companies, timber concessionaires, fire experts and regulatory agencies as well as fire prevention management. The workshop was attended by representatives from Malaysian plantation companies, ASEAN Member Countries, ASEAN Secretariat and international organisations.

HEALTHCARE TOURISM

By Saraswathi Muniaappan

 

NEW DELHI, June 25 (Bernama) -- The Malaysia Heathcare Travel Council (MHTC) is planning to move into the second stage of its marketing effort in South Asia by wooing general practitioners (GPs), its Senior Manager (Business Development) Wong Toon Keng said. "Earlier, it was all about making MHTC more visible. Now, we want to hard sell," he said.

 

Approaching GPs is among the best options, as patients would often follow their advice, he told Bernama in an interview.  "There is also an option for patient exchange, which is another big market that can be tapped into," he said. MHTC plans to organise an event to gather the GPs and create awareness among them, said Wong.

 

Asked why Indians seek medical treatment in Malaysia, he said it is an option, there are obviously top-notch hospitals and doctors in this region too, but some people might want to go overseas as a matter of choice.  One issue is the demand outstripping the supply, he said. "Sometimes it can also be for convenience, for instance if their kids are working and residing in Malaysia," he said.

 

The potential in India is enormous, he said, pointing out that a total of 22,350 healthcare travellers from India come to Malaysian hospitals for treatments related to cardiology, oncology, orthopaedic and health screening.

 

Recently, a leading medical tourism portal added Malaysia to a list of top centres in Asia for advanced healthcare.

 

The "Destinations" page featuring myMEDholiday.com's newest location includes a summary on Malaysia as a medical tourism haven, the country's top hospitals and clinics and the highly qualified doctors and specialists  It looks at some of Malaysia's better-known fields of expertise such as cardiology, oncology, orthopaedics, infertility treatment and reconstructive surgery.

 

-- BERNAMA

EFFECT OF HAZE ON TOURISM

The Malaysian government  has declared a state of emergency in Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, Melaka and Johor due to the rising PSI in these areas. This is timely and is good for the people but certainly bad for tourism.

 Haze effect on tourism, and other business activities are unimaginable. When there are too many particles and smoke accumulates in the atmosphere, it will turn to brownish  causing low level of visibility  causing the cancellation of a great number of flight leaving and arriving . 

Therefore prolonged  haze will effect tourism, business trading and other local businesses. It is too late to point fingers at each other.

Just get on with the job of smothering the fires and let us live our lives again and the tourist arrival remain unaffected. by this catastrophy.