Kelantan hotel occupancy increases 10.7%

KOTA BHARU: Hotel occupancy in Kelantan increased 10.7% from January to September last year, state director of Tourism Malaysia Zurina Abdul Samad said on Tuesday, Jan 11.

She said that 638,000 people stayed in hotels in the state in those nine months, compared with 576,000 in the corresponding period of 2009.

The increase is a good reflection on the Tourism Transformation Plan which targets 36 million visiting the country by 2020 and contributing RM168 billion to the national income, she told reporters here.

The offering of affordable luxury and the highlighting of the country's natural assets are part of the plan for a yearly increase of 5% in tourist arrivals.

Zurina said that Kelantan has many unique features that can attract tourists, one of which is the dominance of women traders at the Siti Khadijah market.

She said that her department will stress cooperation with the state government to promote tourism.

It will also work closely with hoteliers and tourism agencies and others connected with the travel trade, Zurina added. — Bernama