AirAsia to elevate Penang as the preferred destination

AirAsia and Penang Global Tourism (PGT) will be working together to elevate Penang as the preferred tourism destination in the region.

Both organisations inked a memorandum of collaboration (MOC) to create new business opportunities, develop joint sales and marketing campaigns, strengthen flight connectivity, and boost the state’s economy through tourism.

AirAsia Malaysia CEO Riad Asmat and PGT CEO Ooi Chok Yan inked the deal, witnessed by Penang state EXCO for Tourism and Creative Economy Yeoh Soon Hin.

“We need a collective effort to rebuild the tourism industry, and PGT has been instrumental in ensuring that Penang is tourism-ready post-pandemic.

“This (collaboration) bodes well with our expansion plans of opening up and developing new markets to and from the state, said Riad.

Penang will welcome more tourists this year as AirAsia brings the region closer to the state with 184 flights weekly as a group.

These include two new domestic routes launched recently from Kota Bharu and Sibu to Penang and several routes that returned to the pre-pandemic frequency.

According to Ooi, stronger collaboration with AirAsia will strengthen the commercial opportunities for state tourism in line with the Penang Tourism Master Plan 2021-2030.

“Partnerships are important to accelerate the industry’s recovery and reach new market segmentations.

“Through this partnership, we will launch exciting campaigns and initiatives in the coming months across all AirAsia key markets, including millions of Airasia Super App users, for cross-promotion activities.

“The state government has been promoting less explored destinations such as Balik Pulau, Teluk Bahang and Seberang Perai, as an initiative to uphold inclusivity in efforts to reach out to more local communities and increase their livelihoods.”

As a start of the collaboration, AirAsia will be offering great value fares to Penang from RM59 all-in-one way starting 15 August until 21 August 2022 for the travel period between 22 August 2022 and 18 April 2023.

AirAsia will not only drive both domestic and international tourists to Penang but will extend tourism promotion through its AirAsia Super App with exciting deals.

Representatives from the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA), Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture (MOTAC), Tourism Malaysia, and other key industry players also attended the event.