TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Sleman Regency Tourism Office and Tourism Promotion Agency participated in the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents or MATTA Fair held at the Malaysian International Trade & Exhibition Center or MITEC, Malaysia on March 22-24, 2024.

During the event, Sleman offered several tourist destinations to the Malaysian tourism market, including the slopes of Mount Merapi and a number of temples in Sleman. These temples include Prambanan, Ratu Boko, and Sewu Temple.

"Malaysia is one of the largest foreign tourist markets in Yogyakarta, from this event we invite them to recognize the tourism potential of Yogyakarta, especially in Sleman Regency," said the Head of the Sleman Regency Tourism Office, Ishadi Zayid on Monday, March 25, 2024.

After the COVID-19 pandemic, starting in 2023, foreign tourists visiting Yogyakarta approached 6,000 people each month. Statistics Indonesia noted that the number of foreign tourist visits to Yogyakarta in March 2023 through Yogyakarta International Airport increased to 5,017 visits. Most visitors came from Malaysia followed by Singapore, the United States, India, China, Germany, the United Kingdom, Japan, South Korea, and France.

Ishadi said that during the three-day event in Malaysia, the Sleman Regency booth received an enthusiastic response from visitors. "Especially travel agents who have often brought foreign guests to Sleman Regency, to begin designing new tour packages," he said.

Promotion carried out in Malaysia is not only limited to tourist destinations but also accommodations. These include hotels, restaurants, gift shops, educational institutions, and also tourist villages.

"We want Malaysian tourists to also be interested in shopping tours, such as batik shopping and local cuisine, which they can find if they visit tourist villages in Sleman," said Ishadi.

According to him, typical foreign tourists want to visit tourist villages that have implemented environmentally friendly principles, namely the 3R concept of reduce, reuse, and recycle.

"Of course, the target of this event is not only the Malaysian market, but also travel agents who participate in the exhibition such as Australia, India, Japan, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Taiwan, and Thailand," he said.

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