As officials work to address problems with visa approvals and flight connectivity, Malaysia is counting on a spike in tourist arrivals in the second half of 2023.

Tan Kok Liang, head of the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents, stated, "We are now in the middle of May; the government has time to increase the arrivals from June onwards."

This year, Malaysia hopes to welcome 16.1 million foreign visitors, a 60% increase from the previous year.

The government is willing to expedite approval for chartered flights into the nation, according to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, to increase arrivals, which are still below pre-Covid levels.

The goals established by Tourism Malaysia are attainable, according to Tan. "For the fourth quarter of this year, we anticipate a surge in demand."

Meanwhile, while the government takes steps to guarantee there are enough flights to a crucial market, tourism minister Tiong King Sing is aiming for at least five million arrivals from China this year. Tan noted that there aren't many planes connecting China with places like Penang and Kota Kinabalu.

According to Tiong on Monday, Malaysia welcomed 178,150 Chinese tourists in the first quarter of 2023, up from fewer than 1,900 tourists at the same time in 2018.

According to information from Tourism Malaysia, around 3.1 million of the 26.1 million tourists that came to the nation in 2019 were Chinese.

According to the government's Visit Malaysia strategy for 2025, Malaysia is aiming for 23.5 million overall arrivals.