I was ask to comment about china market for tourism in sabah recently as well as the sabah tourism development challenges and opportunity .
here are my thoughts, let me know what you think.
Arrivals.
There is a need to remove ourselves from over reliant of china market. It is as if we are putting our egg in one basket. While we know that we can get volume in china market, we must position ourselves to increase the arrival other key market too other than korean market to ensure we have a healthy tourist mix arrival so all our industry player and community is able to engage , be part of and benefit out of the tourism industry.
Hotel Room
Because of being over reliant of china tourist , there is a competition for hotel rooms which put other market on a disadvantage for the it to be strengthen and grow in its arrival.
Having said that, the increase of hotel and resort and facilitating Air Bnb business model in sabah will solve this concern.
Eco Based Product
Sabah key strength for years in its promotional effort has been sabah as a eco based destination. In the past other market that value eco tourism dominant the arrivals hence eco tourism plays a huge role , our key promotional product were conservation area, species based conservation , history , culture and nature.
An island within a conservation park for example has limits of acceptable change, if it is not monitored degradation of the island will happen , water quality and coral reef area is affected etc.
Puting control on number and increase the price to visit a marine park , will put the mass tourism pressure of the conservation area, moving them to other nearby private own island based tourism product.
Mantanani for example should not be position to be gazetted as marine park, however it is best that tour operators that is in the island to get together and organized themselves to have a joint management plan along with the villages for sustainability for progress for all island stakeholder. This will allow the island to design and cater for mass tourism, hence putting the mass arrival pressure off the marine park under sabah park
Tourism Product Innovation
The need to support and facilitate companies that designing tourist product that is design for back to back mass market operation. This will remove the pressure of all tourism market on the eco based tourist product.
as there is increase of tourism product that can cater mass tourism back to back operation , the eco based tourism area will be at less human pressure.
Wechat Pay and the likes of it
There is a need to study on the lost of potential income on the state revenue through tax collected from the tourism industry operator and agents.
With Wechat and the likes of it, payment happen in china. In sabah, operation team just executes the activity as requested. there is huge room for business activity and income adjustment for taxation purpose. Because of this, illegal travel agency pops out like mushroom especially so with the help of 7 and below policy for white van.
This above is just the brief on one part of the conversation , the tourism challenges and opportunity can be better explain with a problem and solution tree analysis. This is just meant to get you thinking on area that is not seldom discuss and to give you insights on opportunities ahead for investment. Good luck, hope you enjoy it.
There is lots of to share and discuss. perhaps on other post.
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