Local tourism has benefited from Chinese and Indian citizens' 30-day visa-free access, and the

hotel association in this area predicted continued growth in business.

Ivan Teo, chairman of the Malaysian Association of Hotels Johor chapter, stated that more rooms were being reserved for the upcoming holiday season."We anticipate seeing more Chinese tourists crossing over to Johor during their visit to Singapore, as Singapore is also implementing the same visa-free initiative for China," he stated.

Teo reported that throughout the first two days of Chinese New Year, hoteliers in this area were also witnessing a rise in reservations.

Johor is usually rather quiet during Chinese New Year; the mob comes in the days before the celebration.

But, a lot of reservations are being made for the festival's opening two days this year. This includes Singaporean non-Chinese who choose to spend their vacations here," he stated.

The improvement of public amenities by the federal and state governments, according to Sharil Nizam Abdul Rahim, director of Tourism Johor, will aid in attempts to attract tourists.

"We have started many ongoing programs to get ready for Visit Malaysia Year in 2026.

"I think that more tourists will be able to visit Malaysia as a result of the upgrades and the visa- free initiatives," he stated.

Jimmy Leong, head of the Malaysian Tourist Guides Council, stated that there hasn't been a significant increase in Chinese and Indian arrivals despite the 30-day visa-free program that was initiated in December of last year.

One potential contributing factor could be the fact that some travelers from both nations are still getting over the financial blow of the pandemic.

Additionally, these travelers can apply for visa-free programs in other nations in the region. Thus, even though we followed the trend, we still need to outperform the rest," he remarked.

According to Leong, industry participants used to observe an increase in the number of tourists, primarily from China, around Chinese New Year.

By now, there ought to have been a sizable throng arriving from China. The head of the Johor Tourist Guides Association, Leong, added, "We have informed the Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry that we are ready to help if the need arises.