KOTA KINABALU, 23 September 2025: Tourism Malaysia ramped up domestic promotions through the Sabah & Labuan Meet East Coast Roadshow held from 21 to 23 September.
This year’s roadshow, organised in collaboration with Sabah Tourism Board and Labuan Corporation, targeted travel trade partners in Kelantan and Pahang, aiming to strengthen ties and boost travel from the East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia to Sabah and Labuan.
Taking place in Kota Bharu and Kuantan, the roadshow comprised 15 tourism and hospitality players from Sabah and Labuan — travel agencies, tour operators, tourism associations, and a hotelier engaged with their East Coast counterparts, exploring new collaborations and partnerships during business-to-business (B2B) sessions.
Beyond networking, the programme featured two inspirational speakers offering comprehensive insights into the attractions and experiences of Sabah and Labuan, inviting visitors to discover their diverse landscapes and rich cultural heritage.
With the support of the Kelantan and Pahang state governments, more than 100 travel content buyers from East Coast Malaysia joined the roadshow presentations.
Tourism Malaysia Sabah Director Haryanty Abu Bakar emphasised the strategic importance of the roadshow: “In conjunction with Visit Malaysia 2026 (VM2026), we are adopting a more aggressive approach to diversify tourism package offerings and enhance promotional activities across all states to boost interstate travel.
AirAsia supports accessibility between Sabah and East Coast Peninsular Malaysia via three flights weekly. With the increased network collaboration and growing two-way domestic tourism demand, we hope this will encourage other airlines to expand into this vital sector.”
According to the latest data released by the Sabah Tourism Board, Sabah welcomed 2,119,813 visitor arrivals from January to July 2025, representing a 20.3% increase compared to the same period in 2024. International visitor arrivals reached 854,648, while domestic arrivals totalled 1,265,165.
