HOG Rally Ready to Rumble
Date Posted: 29 May 2008
      KOTA KINABALU, 29th May 2008: The assembly of Harley Davidson owners arrived in Kota Kinabalu yesterday and after a hearty welcome dinner at the Shangri-La Tanjung Aru Resort and Spa last night, the HOG Rally is ready to rumble. A total of 132 riders from Australia, Brunei, France, Indonesia, Macau, Singapore, Thailand, the USA and all over Malaysia rode off into the horizon towards their first stop in Kuala Penyu this morning, where they will be transferred by boat to “Survivor Island”, Pulau Tiga. Their 3-day rally will also take them to other various signature destinations located on the east coast of Sabah, ...

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Health Tourism Regulations To Be Relaxed
Date Posted: 20 May 2008
KUALA LUMPUR, May 15 (Bernama) -- The Tourism Ministry will set up a special secretariat to ease entry procedures to boost specific tourism sectors including health tourism, education tourism and eco-tourism. Minister Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said said the government was aware there were weaknesses in promoting these sectors as there was no one-stop centre that could make it easier for the entry of these tourists. "I have directed the ministry to view, speed up and tighten the procedures. If we compare with Thailand and Singapore, they have an approach that makes it easier for foreign patients to get medical services in those countries," she said. Azalina was replying to Datuk Ghapur ...

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MAS extends zero-fare offer to ASEAN routes
Date Posted: 20 May 2008
PETALING JAYA: Malaysia Airlines (MAS) is extending its Everyday Low Fares offer to ASEAN destinations and selected routes between China and Malaysia with an allocation of one million seats.The landmark decision by the national carrier comes just over a week after it announced a similar product for all domestic destinations where travellers enjoy zero fares to fly to local destinations, subject to certain restrictions. The domestic product has sold some 150,000 of the one million seats allotted since its launch on May 5."Another one million seats will also be offered for our new packages to both inbound and outbound flights," said MAS executive director and chief financial officer Tengku ...

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AirasiaX Aiming To Fly To Japan By End 2009
Date Posted: 20 May 2008
KUALA LUMPUR, May 15 (Bernama) -- AirAsiaX, Malaysia's long-haul low-cost airline, is confident of launching flights to Japan by end of next year with huge demand due to the high cost of flying there, its director Datuk Seri Tony Fernandes said Thursday. He said the airline had received interest from Japanese travellers frequenting Southeast Asia, adding that the routes were currently underserved. "Japan is a very high cost market, so I think they will appreciate our low fares. And again, they are very underserved to Malaysia. There are not many flights from Japan to Malaysia," he told reporters here after launching AirAsiaX's flight to Perth, Western Australia. Fernandes said he will be ...

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Five ATR 72-500s for Firefly to be delivered this year
Date Posted: 14 May 2008
FIREFLY, Malaysia Airlines'' (MAS) budget airline, will take delivery of five ATR 72-500s this year and another five in 2009. MAS managing director Datuk Seri Idris Jala said the first aircraft will be delivered in August. The 10 ATR 72-500s, configured with 72 seats and featuring also the "Elegance Cabin", are part of the airline''s plans to establish hubs in Subang, Penang, Johor Baru and Kota Kinabalu, while it progressively replaces its ageing fleet of Fokker 50s. MAS signed last June a US$360 million deal with Avion de Transport Regional (ATR) to buy 10 ATR aircraft plus an option for another 10.For MAS itself, Idris said the national carrier is adding 55 aircraft to its fleet as it ...

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MAS: No plans to introduce everyday low fare outside ASEAN
Date Posted: 14 May 2008
PETALING JAYA, MON:Malaysia Airlines (MAS) has no plan to introduce its "Everyday Low Fares" campaign outside the ASEAN region, managing director and chief executive officer Datuk Seri Idris Jala said today. "We have no intention to do that. If you look at many of our loads for international, they are pretty good. If you look at New Zealand, Europe and Australia, the loads are good," he told reporters after the launch of the campaign here today. Idris said the campaign was offering one million zero fares for all its domestic destinations to enable Malaysians to continue travelling and boost tourism. Zero fares means that the passengers only pay airport tax, fuel surcharge and ...

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Time To Open Up Entire Aviation Sector, Says AirAsia''s Tony
Date Posted: 14 May 2008
KUALA LUMPUR, May 5 (Bernama) -- Now that Malaysia Airlines is offering low-cost fares, the time has come for the entire aviation industry in Malaysia to be fully liberalised. In making the call, AirAsia Bhd''s Group Chief Executive Officer, Datuk Tony Fernandes, said the liberalisation should include allowing AirAsia to mount increased flights to Singapore, fly into the island republic from other points in Malaysia as well as fly to international destinations. He said AirAsia would immediately appeal to the government for full liberalisation of the routes into Singapore following the move announced Sunday by MAS to offer low-cost or zero fares. He said the move by MAS was unfair. "MAS ...

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Time To Open Up Entire Aviation Sector, Says AirAsia''s Tony
Date Posted: 08 May 2008
KUALA LUMPUR, May 5 (Bernama) - Now that Malaysia Airlines is offering low-cost fares, the time has come for the entire aviation industry in Malaysia to be fully liberalised. In making the call, AirAsia Bhd''s Group Chief Executive Officer, Datuk Tony Fernandes, said the liberalisation should include allowing AirAsia to mount increased flights to Singapore, fly into the island republic from other points in Malaysia as well as fly to international destinations. He said AirAsia would immediately appeal to the government for full liberalisation of the routes into Singapore following the move announced Sunday by MAS to offer low-cost or zero fares. He said the move by MAS was unfair. "MAS can ...

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National Symphony Orchestra - Event Cancellation
Date Posted: 06 May 2008
Sri Pelancongan Sabah Sdn. Bhd. announces the Cancellation of the National Symphony Orchestra Performances. Sri Pelancongan Sabah Sdn. Bhd. (a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sabah Tourism Board) is cancelling the National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) event which was scheduled to be held on 8th, 9th and 10th May 2008 at Jesselton Point and University Malaysia Sabah's Recital Hall. With the inclusion of Malaysia's top soprano Syafinaz Selamat and three days of captivating musical performances in the programme, the NSO event was undoubtedly one of the most awaited events of the year for Kota Kinabalu. Unfortunately, the failure of Istana Budaya to secure the attendance of Syafinaz Selamat to the ...

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RM35 one-way on MASwings Specials
Date Posted: 05 May 2008
KUCHING: MASwings is offering discounted airfares of between 35 and 80 per cent to selected destinations, every weekend from now on. The ‘Weekend Specials' are being offered at a flat-rate of RM39 per-ticket one-way.The routes are: Kota Kinabalu-Lahad Datu, Lahad Datu-Kota Kinabalu, Kota Kinabalu-Sibu, Bintulu-Sibu, Sibu-Bintulu, Labuan-Miri, Miri-Labuan.The discounted airfares are only available for online purchase via MASwings' website at www.maswings.com.my ."To enjoy the offers, booking need to be made seven days in advance," said a MASwings release. "We are offering the ‘Weekend Specials' to encourage leisure travels," it said.MASwings which started operation on Oct 1, 2007, ...

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Sell Sabah, Sarawak through Borneo Harvest Festival: Masidi
Date Posted: 02 May 2008
KUCHING: Sabah and Sarawak could sell its culture tourism to the world through a joint harvest festival called Borneo Harvest Festival, said Sabah Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun.Both states were blessed with strong tourism products and culture is one of them, said Masidi.Both states could put together package tours in Sabah and Sarawak that highlight the harvest festivals in both states as the main attraction for visitors, with May 30-31 for the Tadau Kaamatan and June 1-2 for the Gawai festival. “These two festivals can help to promote culture tourism where everyone could experience the culture and lifestyle of the indigenous ethnic races,” he ...

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