A selection of bitesize news stories currently making the headlines in Malaysia: Malaysian tourism surges to 36 million visitors Deputy Minister of Tourism, Arts, and Culture (MOTAC), Khairul Firdaus Akbar Khan, revealed today (21/2) that Malaysia’s tourism industry is experiencing a significant surge, with visitor numbers soaring to an impressive 36 million. He attributed…
A few bitesize news stories and tourism developments making the headlines in Indonesia in recent weeks: Indonesia sees significant tourism growth in 2024 Indonesia welcomed 13.9 million foreign tourists in 2024, marking a significant increase from the 11.68 million visitors recorded in 2023, the Ministry of Tourism announced in a press release on Saturday,…
From 19–21 February, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) took centre stage at the South Asia Travel and Tourism Exchange (SATTE) 2025 in India. The event formed part of wider plans to attract 2.3 million Indian arrivals in 2025, by expanding product offerings into new traveller segments, such as families, luxury leisure, weddings and golf…
We’re only 2 months into the year, but Thailand is already well on its way to meeting (and exceeding) its targets for international arrivals in 2025, and potentially returning to pre-pandemic levels if these trends continue. According to a recent statement by Sorawong Thienthong, from Thailand’s Ministry of Tourism and Sports, Thailand welcomed 5.5 million…
From January to August 2025, Malaysia will stage the Yayasan Sime Darby Arts Festival (YSDAF). Now celebrating its 10th year, the festival will cover various locations, communities and artists nationwide, united by a common theme: Community Side By Side. Since 2014, this incredible arts festival has been a mainstay of the Malaysian arts calendar, delivering…
The long-awaited Visit Malaysia 2026 campaign from Tourism Malaysia has finally begun, with India one of the first strategic locations to be the focal point of promotions in the year ahead. The decision reflects the importance of Indian travellers to the Malaysian market, and is indicative of Malaysia’s ambition to attract 1.6 million arrivals from…
Indonesia’s new President, Prabowo Subianto, has revealed plans to expand tourism in Bali and extend development to the lesser-visited northern region. Central to the project is the construction of a second airport on the island, which he believes “will make Bali the new Singapore or Hong Kong, with this development at the centre.” The new…
Tourism officials from Indonesia used the recent ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF) 2025 in Malaysia to showcase a series of innovative tourism strategies and new initiatives which aim to boost regional tourism in the archipelago this year. Held in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, from 15-20 January 2025, ATF 2025 was centred around the following theme: “Unity in…
Panorama Destination Vietnam: our journey to the New Normal For most of 2020 and early 2021, Vietnam remained virtually free of Covid-19. This was because the country was quick to impose border restrictions and quarantines, deploying intensive contact tracing teams where needed and imposing localised lockdowns to keep the virus at bay. With consistently low…
A message from Panorama Destination Thailand Hello from Bangkok! If you’re one of the many people watching The White Lotus series on HBO, you’ll probably already have a pretty clear idea of what makes Thailand such an attractive choice for holidaymakers. Since the series aired, we’ve already seen an 88% increase in internet searches for…