KUCHING, 8 December 2022: Sarawak Tourism Board (STB) is fully embracing the digitalisation of the tourism sector by unveiling the new and improved Sarawak Travel Portal and App to promote tourist attractions and tourism products across the state.
The digital platform is a collaborative effort between the Ministry of Tourism, Creative Industry & Performing Arts (MTCP), Sarawak Multimedia Authority (SMA), STB and Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) to provide a next-generation website and a smart device application to provide an added-value experience for travellers to Sarawak,
Minister of Tourism, Creative Industry & Performing Arts Datuk Seri Haji Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah said creating a quality end-to-end tourist experience was important to improve travellers’ engagement with Sarawak.
“We are going to the next evolution in promoting Sarawak and its tourism products, and that is the merging of the Sarawak Tourism website with the Sarawak Travel Portal and App to create a seamless online experience for prospective travellers,” he said.
“Now, as the improved Travel Portal and App is equipped with cutting edge technologies such as the Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) components, users gain total control over what they can see of Sarawak’s Culture, Adventure, Nature, Food and Festival (CANFF) offerings and experience Sarawak through a 360 view,” he added.
Since it was first launched in February 2020, the Sarawak Travel Portal and App have received continuous development and upgrades, which include four new content modules, namely Scenic Sites, National Parks and Nature Reserves, Food Trails and an interactive game module.
Featuring five modules, the upgraded website and app offer fun and engaging digital solutions for visitors who want to stay in Sarawak, with Modules 1 to 4 allowing users to take virtual tours of Sarawak’s Tourism destination with detailed information on Old Kuching Heritage Sites, Scenic Sites, National Parks and Food Trails that feature 3D models of iconic products such as Sarawak Cultural Village (SCV), Mulu National Park and many more.
Through GPS technology, users get to try out Module 5, which has a geo-location game feature as a fun way to visit various Sarawak Tourism attractions, such as the Kuching Waterfront, Chinese History Museum or Brooke Gallery, while accepting challenges from the game and collecting badges to unlock various achievements.
Another featured highlight of the Sarawak Travel App is its Geofencing capability to inform users what tourist attractions are nearby. It also digitally emulates a physical tour guide by giving background info and the significance of the attraction and products; and also gives directions on how to get there.
The Sarawak Travel Portal and App is now available for download on Google Play Store and Apple Store.
The Sarawak Government continues its digital initiatives for the tourism sector by launching the “Sarawak Road Trip: Self Drive Travel Guide” last week in Kuching and on 10 December 2022 in Miri. Visitors travelling by road can download the specified Google Map route to their smartphone via a QR code for easy navigation from one tourist attraction to another.
According to recent data by Statista, an estimated 1.7 billion mobile augmented reality (AR) user devices will be worldwide in 2024, an increase of 1.5 billion from the 200 million seen in 2015.
For more information on Sarawak, visit www.sarawaktourism.com.
(Your Stories: Sarawak Tourism Board)
