The Covid-19 pandemic, as well as the introduction of the Movement Control Order (MCO), has had a significant impact on a variety of industries, including tourism.

The Melaka Crocodile and Recreational Park (TBRM), which is entirely reliant on tourists and visitors, has to develop a completely new strategy to safeguard the future of its animals and park.

TBRM created their own online tours of the park as an endeavour to keep the business operating, according to park general manager Ahmad Syarifuddin Mohamad.

The effort will take internet viewers on a tour of the park, which is home to 100 different types of crocodiles, six different snake species, and mammals including racoons and deer.

A crocodile feeding session will be included in the tour.

“Our main goal is to stay surviving during this pandemic season, as the tourism business is one of the hardest hit.

“Even though we received financial support from both the government and the general people, the reality is that the expense of maintaining the park has outstripped the support, and we have had to find new ways to keep it operating.

“We hope that the public will join us in supporting the wellbeing of these animals by engaging in our efforts,” Syarifuddin said.

Syarifuddin, who has been with TBRM for seven years, said the idea for the online tour came after they had done a few Facebook Live online tours since the first MCO last year.

“So, for the first few Facebook live tours, we did informative tours complete with facts about the animals and behind-the-scenes footage of our animal caretakers.

“The response from the viewers was incredible, and we began to receive requests from people who wanted to see more of the Facebook live session.

“That's when it occurred to us that, given we already have the demand, why not try to do a paid online tour” he said.

TBRM received tremendous support from the public as their online tour slots for this weekend have been fully booked despite it being launched just last Saturday.

The online tour will have two sessions a day, from Friday to Sunday only.