The Star reported that by the end of March 2025, 12 of these routes had been put into operation, adding more than 100 flights to Malaysia, according to Malaysia's Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Tiong King Sing.
"This is part of Malaysia Tourism Year 2026's strategy (VM2026), focusing on expanding direct flights to many cities in China to attract more tourists," said Mr. Vietnam.
He also stressed that most of the new routes connect with China, one of Malaysia's largest tourism markets, according to Dayak Daily.
In 2024, Malaysia welcomed 38 million visitors, including 13 million short-term visitors, marking a 31.1% increase over the same period last year and an 8.3% increase over the period before the pandemic in 2019.
Malaysia was honored by the US financial website Insider Monkey as the most favorite country in Asia in 2024.
In addition to Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam are also expanding international routes to attract more foreign tourists.
