MARKET PROFILE
MALAYSIA
Market overview
In 2015, Malaysia was Australia’s seventh largest inbound market
for visitor arrivals, ninth largest market for total visitor spend and
12th for visitor nights.
Key importance factors for holiday destination choice
1 Safety and security 67%Value for money 44% Family friendly 36%
World class nature 35% Food and wine 35%
Aviation routes from Malaysia to Australia
2 Europe Sydney Melbourne Adelaide Darwin Perth Kuala Lumpur Kota Kinabalu Gold CoastWhich airlines
3do Malaysian visitors
use to travel to Australia?
Airline 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Air Asia X 42% 48% 49% 53% 47% Malaysia Airlines 32% 31% 32% 30% 33% Singapore Airlines 12% 8% 6% 5% 5% Emirates 4% 3% 3% 3% 4% Scoot 0% 2% 2% 2% 2% Others 11% 8% 8% 8% 9%$2.0-2.5bn
Potential to be worth by 2020339,000
Visitor arrivals3 (á 4 per cent) Holiday◊§57%
Visiting friends & relativesפ23%
Businessפ7%
Educationפ7%
$1.1bn
Total spend4 (á 7 per cent)26
*
4 Average nights stayed◊8
**
4 Median nights stayed◊Feb-Mar and Sep
Booking peak period
Lunar New Year, Jul and school holidays
Travel peak period
Purchase funnel
1In Malaysia, Australia ranks a close #2 to Japan on aspiration and awareness and overtakes Japan on intention to achieve the #1 rank. Australia’s ranking falls slightly to #4 on a visitation basis, behind China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Japan follows at #5 for visitation, with lower conversion from high aspiration and awareness.
2
ND
ASPIRATION2
ND
AWARENESS1
ST
INTENTION4
TH
VISITATIONNotes:*Average nights: the sum of all nights divided by the sum of all visitors. **Median nights: represents the midpoint length of stay for which 50% of visitors stay less and 50% stay longer. ◊Data refers to an average of 2011-2015. §Refers to share of arrivals of respective purpose.
Sources:1.Tourism Australia, Consumer Demand Project, 2015. 2.Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development, December 2015. 3.Department of Immigration and Border Protection, December 2015. 4.Tourism Research Australia, International Visitor Survey, December 2015
MARKET PERFORMANCE
MALAYSIA
Notes: Δ Leisure refers to main purpose of visit of holiday and visiting friends and relatives. † Age profile data refers to an average of 2011-2015. Sources: 1. Department of Immigration and Border Protection, December 2015. 2. Tourism Research Australia, International Visitor Survey, December 2015.
»
The charts on this page provide a trend overview of visitor arrivals and spend over the last 10 years by main
purpose of visit, by first time and repeat leisure
Δvisitors and also a snapshot of age demographic split of
leisure visitors and spend.
Visitor arrivals
1339,000 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 Dec-06 Ju n-07 Dec-07 Ju n-08 Dec-08 Ju n-09 Dec-09 Ju n-10 Dec-10 Ju n-11 Dec-11 Ju n-12 Dec-12 Ju n-13 Dec-13 Ju n-14 Dec-14 Ju n-15 Dec-15 Visi to r ar riv als (000 s) Year ending
Visitor arrivals by main purpose of visit
10 50 100 150 200 250 Dec-06 Ju n-07 Dec-07 Ju n-08 Dec-08 Ju n-09 Dec-09 Ju n-10 Dec-10 Ju n-11 Dec-11 Ju n-12 Dec-12 Ju n-13 Dec-13 Ju n-14 Dec-14 Ju n-15 Dec-15 Vi sit or ar rivals (0 00 s) Year ending Holiday Visiting friends or relatives Education Business Employment Other
First and repeat leisure visitor arrivals
2 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 Dec-06 Ju n-07 Dec-07 Ju n-08 Dec-08 Ju n-09 Dec-09 Ju n-10 Dec-10 Ju n-11 Dec-11 Ju n-12 Dec-12 Ju n-13 Dec-13 Ju n-14 Dec-14 Ju n-15 Dec-15 Visi to r ar riv als (000 s) Year ending Return visit First visitLeisure arrivals by age
2†
15 – 29 yrs 24% 30 – 44 yrs 27% 45 –59 yrs 33%60 yrs & over 16%
Visitor spend
2 $1.1bn 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2 1.4 Dec-06 Ju n-07 Dec-07 Ju n-08 Dec-08 Ju n-09 Dec-09 Ju n-10 Dec-10 Ju n-11 Dec-11 Ju n-12 Dec-12 Ju n-13 Dec-13 Ju n-14 Dec-14 Ju n-15 Dec-15 To tal tri p spen d ($ bn ) Year endingVisitor spend by main purpose of visit
20 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 Dec-06 Ju n-07 Dec-07 Ju n-08 Dec-08 Ju n-09 Dec-09 Ju n-10 Dec-10 Ju n-11 Dec-11 Ju n-12 Dec-12 Ju n-13 Dec-13 Ju n-14 Dec-14 Ju n-15 Dec-15 To tal tri p spen d (A$ 000 s) Year ending Education Holiday Visiting friends or relatives Employment Other Business
First and repeat leisure visitor spend
2 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 500 Dec-06 Ju n-07 Dec-07 Ju n-08 Dec-08 Ju n-09 Dec-09 Ju n-10 Dec-10 Ju n-11 Dec-11 Ju n-12 Dec-12 Ju n-13 Dec-13 Ju n-14 Dec-14 Ju n-15 Dec-15 To tal tri p spen d (A$ 000 s) Year ending Return visit First visitLeisure spend by age
2†
15 – 29 yrs 18% 30 – 44 yrs 23% 45 –59 yrs 44%60 yrs & over 15%
MARKET PERFORMANCE
MALAYSIA
Notes: o Data refers to an average of 2011-2015. § Refers to share of arrivals of respective purpose of visit. ◊Top 10 regions visited data refers to an average of 2011-2015. Percentages will not add to 100% as one person can visit multiple regions. The data refers to visitors who spent at least one night in the region.
* Leisure refers to main purpose of visit of holiday and visiting friends and relatives.
Sources: 1. Department of Immigration and Border Protection, December 2015. 2. Tourism Research Australia, International Visitor Survey, December 2015.
»
The following˚ table provides a summary of arrivals, spend and the proportion of repeat visitors to Australia
by main purpose of visit: holiday, visiting friends and relatives, business and education.
HOLIDAY
VISITING FRIENDS
AND RELATIVES BUSINESS EDUCATION
Arrivals1 162,200 (57%§) 65, 800 (23%§) 18,400 (7%§) 19,700 (7%§) Spend per trip2 $2,405 $2,460 $3,397 $18,789 Spend per night2 $226 $123 $280 $130 Repeat visitors2 60% 85% 74% 87% Average nights stayed2 11 20 12 145 Median nights stayed2 7 11 6 133
»
The following provides an overview of top 10 regions visited by leisure visitors*
Top 10 regions visited by leisure visitors
◊*
2 Melbourne 39% Perth 26% Sydney 25% Gold Coast 12% Brisbane 7% Adelaide 5%Australia’s South West, Western Australia 3% Hobart 2%
Western Victoria 2% Canberra 2%
MALAYSIA
AVIATION LANDSCAPE
» In 2015 direct capacity from Malaysia to Australia declined 19 per cent after strong growth recorded in previous years. Despite the capacity decline in 2015 as the two key national carriers, Malaysia Airlines and Air Asia X went through restructuring and rationalizsation of their routes, capacity between Malaysia to Australia was still eight per cent higher compared to 2013. In late 2015, Malindo Airlines commenced operations between Kuala Lumpur and Perth.
» With arrivals from Malaysia still growing steadily, average loads during 2015 improved two percentage points to 76 per cent. Outside the peak of Australian holiday periods (January, July, and October) and Lunar New Year (January/February), load factors were relatively low (hovering between 60-75 per cent).
» Eighty per cent of visitors chose to fly Malaysia Airlines and Air Asia X to Australia in 2015, down three percentage points compared to 2014. With the capacity cuts by both airlines, some share was expected to be captured by other carriers.
» The ASEAN single market agreement,
which is expected to fully liberalise air travel between member states in the ASEAN region, has been an ongoing negotiation. However, there are hopes it could be finalised in the near future. Once the agreement is ratified by all members, demand is expected to be diverted away from Australia in the short term as intra-Asian travel is stimulated.
Direct aviation capacity from Malaysia to Australia
1 0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 De c-06 Ju n-07 De c-07 Ju n-08 De c-08 Ju n-09 De c-09 Ju n-10 De c-10 Ju n-11 De c-11 Ju n-12 De c-12 Ju n-13 De c-13 Ju n-14 De c-14 Ju n-15 De c-15 Se at s p er y ea r (000 s) Year ending Malaysia Airlines AirAsia X JetstarSources: 1. Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development, Aviation Statistics, December 2015. 2. Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development, International Airlines Timetable Summary (Northern Winter), 2015-2016
Weekly services to Australia
2 Operating AirlinesFlights
per week Route Alliance/ code share partner (on route)
Malaysia Airlines 4 Kuala Lumpur – Adelaide KLM, Sri Lankan Airlines
14 Kuala Lumpur – Melbourne
14 Kuala Lumpur – Sydney
7 Kuala Lumpur – Perth KLM, Sri Lankan Airlines, Qatar Airways
3 Kuala Lumpur – Darwin Japan Airlines
1 Kota Kinabalu – Perth
AirAsia X 12 Kuala Lumpur – Melbourne
11 Kuala Lumpur – Perth
14 Kuala Lumpur – Sydney
5 Kuala Lumpur – Gold Coast
Malindo Air 11 Kuala Lumpur-Perth
MALAYSIA
PLANNING AND BOOKING INFORMATION SOURCES
Source: Tourism Australia, Consumer Demand Project, 2015
»
The following charts highlight the information sources that Malaysian consumers use to plan and book
their holidays.
Preferred sources for early planning and inspiration
General internet searching 37%
Friends or relatives who have been before or live there 35% Travel or guide books 34%
Online and social media photos and blogs 31% Online travellers’ opinions and reviews 28% Airline 25%
Brochures 24%
Online flights booking site 24% Online hotel booking site 23% TV programs 22%
Preferred sources for seeking information about Australia specifically
Friends or relatives who have been before or live there 39% General internet searching 35%
Travel or guide books 29%
Online and social media photos and blogs 28% Airline 26%
Online flights booking site 23%
Accommodation/activity/experience provider websites 21%
TV travel programs 19% Brochures 19%
Online hotel booking site 21%
Preferred sources used to book a holiday to Australia
Directly through airline (online) 38% Travel agent (telephone or in person) 31% Accommodation provider (online) 24% Other travel booking website 18% Travel agent (online) 15%
Directly through airline (telephone or in person) 15% Accommodation provider (telephone or in person) 12%
Tour operator (telephone and in person) 8% Tour operator (online) 6%
MALAYSIA
DISTRIBUTION
»
Online bookings are growing rapidly in Malaysia amongst the Free and Independent Traveller (FIT) segment,
particularly for flights, accommodation, car rental, day tours and attraction entry passes. The online
environment is providing consumers with extensive destination information, and the ability to conduct
price comparisons. Social media is also fast gaining popularity with Malaysians for sharing information. The
distribution system has become more complex as consumers use a combination of traditional and online
channels to plan and book travel. The preference for last minute travel purchases remains entrenched for
most Malaysian travellers.
Distribution system
Wholesalers/ Large Agencies
Commission Level: 10% to 15%
» There is no formal distinction between wholesalers and retails agencies. A few large travel agencies such as AD Travel, Airlink Travel, Golden Deluxe, Golden Tourworld, LKW Travel, Malaysian Harmony, PNL Travel and Reliance take reservations from consumers through their own retail network. Some also take reservations from smaller travel agencies which have limited access to inbound tour operators (ITOs) and do not undertake consumer advertising.
Retail Agents Commission Level: 5% to 10%
» There are approximately 1,300 retail travel agencies in Malaysia, with more than 300 agencies selling Australian products and packages. The majority of agencies are small to medium sized, independently-owned enterprises. Around 20 key agencies partner with Tourism Australia and State and Territory Tourism Organisations (STOs) in marketing campaigns.
» With increasing interest from the Free and Independent Traveller (FIT), more travel agencies are organising their own tour packages to meet customers’ needs and demands, rather than relying solely on packages developed by the larger agencies and ITOs.
» Familiarity with Australia and active engagement by State and Territory Tourism Organisations, ITOs and Australian suppliers has made Australia a very ‘modular’ destination. This has enabled many small travel agents to offer their own holiday packages to specific destinations within Australia for leisure, incentives and semipackaged FIT trips.
» Packages for international sports and events are growing for Malaysia visitors, particularly the Gold Coast Marathon, Vivid Sydney and Melbourne Food & Wine festival.
Aussie Specialists » The Aussie Specialist Program (ASP) is the primary platform for Tourism Australia to train and develop front line travel sellers to best sell Australia.
» As at April 2016, there were 375 qualified Aussie Specialists in Malaysia. The majority of agents are located in the Klang Valley (Kuala Lumpur and surrounds), Penang, Ipoh, Johor Bahru, Kuching and Kota Kinabalu.
Online » All major retail agencies have an online presence, and online business is growing. However, the number of direct consumer enquiries and visits to offline agents still remains high.
» Key Online Travel Agencies include Expedia, Lastminute.com, Priceline, 12Fly and PYO.
» Airline sites are increasing in popularity for flight and accommodation bookings, especially those with popular services to Australia such as AirAsia X, Malaysia Airlines, Singapore Airlines, Emirates, Scoot, Tiger Airways and Jetstar.
Inbound Tour Operators Commission Level: up to 20%
» Inbound tour operators (ITOs) remain a key link in the distribution of product in the Malaysian market place. However, there is a noticeable trend to direct deals with hoteliers and operators, in particular for accommodation and day tours.
MALAYSIA
DISTRIBUTION
Trends
Distribution
» The increased competition in the Malaysian aviation sector has resulted in:
> Travellers becoming increasingly price sensitive as airlines offer competitive airfares on a regular basis.
> Travellers booking airfares online, due to attractive website promotions and increasing acceptance of online purchasing.
> Some travellers planning and purchasing earlier, especially in the FIT segment, to take advantage of ‘early bird’ airfare deals and promotions.
» Due to competitive pricing, group package tours are still the basis for outbound travel for new destinations. For repeat visitation, FIT travel is more common.
» There is increased consumer interest in the cruise market. Major cruise lines operating in Malaysia are Royal Caribbean Cruise, Princess and Star Cruise.
» Consumer travel fairs organised by the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) occur in March (Kuala Lumpur, Ipoh and Johor), July (Penang), and September (Kuala Lumpur and Ipoh). There are also additional consumer travel fairs organised by the Malaysian Chinese Tourism Association (MCTA/ MITM), which occur in July (Penang & Johor) and August (Kuala Lumpur).
Planning and purchasing travel
» Consumers in Malaysia are value conscious and actively review a range of destinations and information sources, seeking favourable deals before making travel purchases.
» There are a significant number of consumers who will purchase airfares directly from airlines and secure ground arrangements later.
» Malaysia is a mature market and consumers have a solid knowledge of Australia.
Planning a visit to market
Top tips for sales calls
» Malaysian travel trade partners value personal relationships and loyalty. Persistent visits and contact can assist in this process.
» Tourism Australia has an office in Kuala Lumpur. Make your first call to the Tourism Australia office to receive the latest market information and provide a product update.
» Avoid sales calls on Monday and Friday mornings and a week prior or during major holidays, school holidays and travel fairs.
» Malaysian travel trade partners prefer printed collateral and high resolution images on a USB drive.
» Value-add or competitive pricing offers during the low season travel period (March to August) are useful to trigger tactical campaigns with travel agents in particular consumer travel fairs in March.
» The best time of year for sales calls is after Chinese New Year, April and June to October.
» The key market centres to visit are Kuala Lumpur and the Klang Valley, which accounts for 65 per cent of outbound travel to Australia. The key secondary markets are Penang, Ipoh and Johor.
» For more general information on sales calls and planning a visit to market, please see Tourism Australia’s Planning for Inbound Success ebook at
www.tourism.australia.com/ inboundsuccess
MALAYSIA
DISTRIBUTION
Where to find more information
Tourism Australia’s activities in Malaysia are managed from its Kuala Lumpur office. For more information, visit Tourism Australia’s corporate website at
www.tourism.australia.com.
Tourism and Events Queensland also operates in Malaysia.
Also see:
Malaysia Country Brief published by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade at: www.dfat.gov.au/geo
For the latest arrivals statistics, visit:
www.tourism.australia.com/arrivals
For additional statistical reports refer to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) and Tourism Research Australia (TRA) websites:
www.abs.gov.au and www.tra.gov.au
Key trade and consumer events
Event Location Date
MATTA Travel Fair Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia
2-4 September 2016
Corroboree Asia Perth, Australia 5-9 September 2016
Australian Tourism Exchange (ATE) Sydney, Australia 14-18 May 2017
Contact
Level 29, 420 George Street Sydney, NSW, 2000
Telephone: +61 2 9360 1111 Email: ask.us@tourism.australia.com
Corporate: tourism.australia.com | twitter.com/TourismAus