The Penang State Government hails the whopping 783% increase in weekly international flights to the Penang International Airport (PIA) from January 2022 to July 2022 time frame.

The feat makes PIA to have the highest number of international direct flights after Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA).

Penang State Exco for Tourism and Creative Economy YB Yeoh Soon Hin further emphasised his vision and mission to have more direct flights to PIA in the near future.

Present at the press conference to announce the latest development was the Penang director for the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture (MOTAC), Jonathan Freddy Bagang, Penang Global Tourism chief executive officer Ooi Chok Yan and Tourism Malaysia deputy director for Northern Region, Pn Siti Hajar Yunus.

Other stakeholders were Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH Penang Chapter) chairman, Tony Goh, PIA Senior Airport Manager Mohd Nadzim Hashim, Penang Budget Hotel Association chairman, Datuk Lim Mee Lee,  Ms Lisa Wong (MAS Area Manager Northern), MATTA Penang chapter chairman Vergis Mathews, AirAsia Northern Region director Ken Tan among others.

“The streets of Penang have seen an influx of international travellers and we are thrilled to see that tourism activities have begun to gain vitality in the market.

“We have also taken steps to reignite the marketing strategies catering to the international market from 2020. The “Welcome to Penang” tagline has also been highly elevated through the use of digital marketing schemes with promotions and deals curated exclusively for the travellers”, said Yeoh in his address.

Among the initiatives was the Dubai World Expo, Arabian Travel Mart in Dubai, Tourism Malaysia Roadshow in Korea and the Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council in Surabaya to increase the exposure of Penang at the global stage.

In the meantime, mega cruise ships like the Spectrum of the Seas and the Genting Dream are coming back to the Swettenham Pier Cruise Terminal.