Hotels in Malaysia have experienced a notable uptick in the Chinese business events sector, partly due to the introduction of the 30-day visa-free travel to Malaysia which started on December 1, 2023.
Improved air connectivity, driven by the launch of new direct routes by Malaysia Airlines, AirAsia Malaysia, Air China, China Eastern Airlines, and China Southern Airlines, has also played a key role in fuelling this trend. Presently, there are 327 weekly flights connecting China and Malaysia.
Ramesh Jackson, the area vice president for Indonesia and Malaysia at Marriott International, foresees a further surge in bookings in 2H2024, particularly from Chinese organisers located in Tier One and Tier Two cities in China.
An emerging trend is the growing focus on sustainability among Chinese bookers. Ramesh explained: “They are increasingly concerned about sustainability practices at the property level, carbon footprint, and food sourcing.”
Bleisure travel has also made a resurgence. To accommodate this trend, Marriott Concierge teams are equipped with local knowledge to share hidden gems in the area, ensuring a memorable and enriching experience for guests.
Ramesh also noted a significant decrease in lead times for bookings, now averaging 45 days compared to three months before the pandemic.
As for Jeanne Chan, director of Commercial Sunway Resort Hotel, Sunway Pyramid Hotel, and Sunway Lagoon Hotel, she observed that with the visa-free requirements, last-minute delegate numbers for business events are higher than initial estimates from Chinese organisers.
She added that the hotel group has attracted incentive travel groups from multi-level marketing and insurance companies based in China’s Tier One cities. However, many other Chinese companies are still recovering from the recent pandemic and are cautious with their spending.
