By V. Sivaji
It was a memorable familiarization trip for some 15 media representatives and tour agents from Singapore to Penang after a hiatus of two years due to the pandemic.
Coupled with the much anticipated reopening of international borders wef April 1, 2022 on the horizon, there is positivity and vibrancy for the tourism industry.
The group were greeted by State Exco for Tourism and Creative Economy YB Yeoh Soon Hin at The Prestige hotel followed by a lunch session.
“On March 16, the inaugural Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) flight from Singapore brought in 60 passengers to Penang.
“Subsequent data from March 16 to March 28 shows a total of 5,400 passenger movements. The breakdown being 2,600 arriving and 2,800 departing passengers.
“This involved three airlines namely AirAsia, Singapore Airlines and Scoot Tiger,” said Yeoh.
He also added that the safety, health and hygiene of all is a top and unwavering commitment of the Penang State government.
“The Penang State government has responded swiftly to the pandemic in terms of policy making. In the meantime, Penang has been in talks with global airlines to launch more direct flights in the future,” added Yeoh.
He later mingled with the visitors to make their stay an unforgettable one.
Also present was Tourism Malaysia Northern Region director Shahrul Seman and his deputy Siti Hajar Yunus along with Penang Global Tourism (PGT) chief executive officer, Ooi Chok Yan and Fiona Estrop, marketing manager for Tourism Malaysia (Singapore Office).