Malaysia smashes first-quarter tourism record with 10.6 million arrivals

Malaysia smashes first-quarter tourism record with 10.6 million arrivals



Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing said Malaysia received 10,647,200 international visitors between January and March this year, a 5.4 per cent increase from the same period last year. — Picture by Yusof Mat Isa

Wednesday, 13 May 2026 9:50 AM MYT


KUALA LUMPUR, May 13 — Malaysia recorded a new tourism milestone in the first quarter of 2026, welcoming more than 10.6 million international visitors — the highest ever for the period and the second consecutive year the country has crossed the 10 million mark in the first three months of the year.

In a statement today, Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing said Malaysia received 10,647,200 international visitors between January and March this year, a 5.4 per cent increase from the same period last year.

The figure surpassed last year’s previous record of 10,102,972 arrivals by roughly half a million visitors.

Tiong noted that before the Covid-19 pandemic, Malaysia had never crossed the 10 million mark in the first quarter, with arrivals during the corresponding period in 2019 standing at 9,011,670.

He attributed much of the growth to strong Chinese New Year travel demand, particularly from China, alongside expanded flight connectivity into Malaysia.

Malaysia also recorded its highest-ever monthly tourist arrival figure in February this year, when international arrivals reached 3,472,557.

According to Tiong, it was the first time monthly arrivals had exceeded the three million mark.

He said the surge was largely driven by Chinese New Year travel, supported by increased flight frequencies between Malaysia and China during the festive season.

During the period, airlines including China Eastern Airlines and Shanghai Airlines increased routes between both countries from 82 to 106, while total flights rose to 424 throughout the travel window.

The move helped push arrivals from China during Chinese New Year to 604,675 visitors.

China remained Malaysia’s strongest growth market in the first quarter, contributing an additional 280,000 visitors compared to the same period last year.

Tiong said arrivals from China grew 25.2 per cent year-on-year, making it the single biggest contributor to Malaysia’s tourism growth, while Australia recorded double-digit growth at 11.4 per cent.

Overall, 12 source markets contributed more than 100,000 visitors each during the first quarter.

However, some markets registered declines, including Indonesia at 3.3 per cent, India at 1.5 per cent and South Korea at 3.1 per cent.

Tiong said Asean remained Malaysia’s largest tourism source region, with total arrivals increasing by more than 350,000 visitors in the first quarter.

Among Asean countries, only Indonesia and Vietnam recorded declines, with Vietnam dropping 11.6 per cent, while other member countries posted growth ranging between 3.5 per cent and 54.3 per cent.

Beyond Asean, arrivals from East Asia also rose by more than 200,000 visitors, while Europe, the Americas and Oceania each registered increases exceeding 10,000 arrivals. Central Asia recorded the highest regional growth rate at 20 per cent.

Malaysia also crossed another tourism milestone when European visitor arrivals exceeded 500,000 in the first quarter for the first time.

Tiong said the ministry has been targeting European travellers as part of efforts to increase tourism receipts, as visitors from the region typically stay longer in Malaysia.

Of the 16 key European markets tracked by the ministry, 15 recorded growth in arrivals during the first quarter.

Among the strongest-performing markets were Turkiye, which grew 77.3 per cent, followed by Ukraine at 35.3 per cent and Poland at 23.7 per cent.

Germany was the only major European market to record a decline, falling 10.2 per cent.

Despite the overall growth, Tiong acknowledged that geopolitical tensions in the Middle East had begun affecting tourism flows towards the end of March.

He said disruptions to fuel supply and changes to flight routes had increased airline operating costs, contributing to higher ticket prices and some flight cancellations.

The Middle East region recorded the steepest decline in visitor arrivals, down 27.2 per cent year-on-year, while South Asia and North Africa also registered declines of 6.7 per cent and 8.4 per cent respectively.

Still, Tiong described Malaysia’s overall first-quarter performance as “encouraging”, noting that six out of nine tourism regions recorded growth.

Malaysia’s tourism growth was also supported by expanded international air connectivity.

Tiong said 20 new scheduled international routes began operations during the first quarter, with 12 airlines collectively adding 95 international flights per week into Malaysia.

Five additional airlines also operated six charter routes connecting Malaysia with China and Hong Kong.

Xiamen Airlines meanwhile upgraded its Nanjing-Kuala Lumpur route into a daily service beginning in March.

Tiong said the ministry would continue strengthening partnerships with international tourism and aviation players ahead of Visit Malaysia Year 2026, including through engagements at the Asean Tourism Forum in Cebu and ITB Berlin earlier this year.

He also confirmed that Lufthansa will begin direct Frankfurt-Kuala Lumpur flights from October 25 this year.

***

Thanks to Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing, GOAT (Greatest of All Time) Tourism Minister - Hail, Dirgahayu, Wansui 👍👍👍😂