Category: Updates

Sarawak Tourism Board will participate in various trade & consumer fairs in its focus markets in 2019.

The focus market include Domestic, Regional, Europe, China and Australia markets, with many established travel fairs planned in STB’s marketing initiative calendar.

More importantly, Sarawak will be holding their own trade or roadshows in certain markets such as the Sarawak Expo, a consumer fair, which will be held in November in Indonesia.

In Singapore, a two-part “Singapore Business Networking Session” will take place in April and October to encourage new business connections between Sarawak and Singapore industry partners.

STB will also be holding a Sarawak Tourism Roadshow in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, with a B2B format, for the same reason.

A two-part Sarawak Tourism Seminar in collaboration with AirAsia will be taking place in South China as well, the first session taking place in March and the second in October.

STB encourages international trade partners to attend the various trade and consumer fairs and roadshows in the year of 2019, to form new business ventures to promote Sarawak’s attractions and products worldwide.

For more in depth information on the 2019 marketing initiatives here…

The Visit Sarawak Campaign’s plane livery will be launched by Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg at Kuching International Airport on February 2.

The AirAsia plane will fly for at least two years with a possible three-year extension, along an international route, to enhance the visibility of Sarawak’s brand and name, in the aims of achieving the state’s goal of 5 million visitors by the end of 2019.

The plane livery features a large rhinoceros hornbill along the side of the aircraft, as well as the Visit Sarawak Campaign’s logo and tagline, “Sarawak – More to Discover”.

A new electric bus was unveiled at Borneo Convention Centre Kuching (BCCK) as a part of a pilot project that will introduce electric buses into the streets of Kuching.

Beginning early next year, the bus will take a 14km long route covering Satok, the Heritage Trail and iCOM Square, offering free rides to all locals and visitors for the first three months.

The bus has a capacity of 53 passengers and is wheelchair-friendly, with amenities like free Wi-Fi and a GPS tracking system.

It is fully electric and operates a range of around 300km on a fully charged battery, with a charging station located at Jalan Depo.

This encouraging move towards ‘clean energy’ driven public transport promises a greener future for Kuching, with a smaller carbon footprint and less air pollution.

Sarawak Tourism Board recently held industry engagement sessions and a media night in Miri and Sibu, touching base and showing gratitude to media partners in the two cities.

On December 11 and 12 respectively, the syndication with industry partners was also held in Miri was held to present the Board’s plans for the coming Visit Sarawak Campaign and to take in feedback to be implemented in the future.

The Miri Media Appreciation Night was held to show the board’s gratitude to the local media in how they promote the communities, cultures and events within their region. The night was filled with lucky draws, karaoke and a photo booth for the members of the media to enjoy.

The Cruise ship Silver Muse, Monaco berthed on November 29 at the Senari port in Kuching. The cruise ship was on its 12-Day “Hong Kong – Singapore” route and stopped by Kuching as the final port before arriving in Singapore.

The disembarking passengers were greeted with a traditional welcoming and garlanding by a cultural at the courtesy of the Sarawak Tourism Board.

The cruise ship has a total of 528 passengers from Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, China, Costa Rica, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Hong Kong, Hungary, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Korea, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, United Kingdom and the United States of America.

The highest number of passengers came from United Kingdom with 97 passengers, the United States with 91 people and Australia with 76.

Excursion trips available to the disembarking passengers include a Kuching City Tour, Semenggoh Nature Reserve and Annah Rais visit as well as a Sarawak Cultural Village tour, while others took a City Shuttle to explore Kuching on their own.

Sarawak Tourism Board held a Media Appreciation Night at Grand Margherita Hotel in Kuching on November 27.

130 media members from across all publications, spanning from traditional newspapers to independent bloggers, enjoyed the night of appreciation for the coverage they have given on Sarawak, its many festivals and events, as well as its stories on the multi-cultural communities.

There will be similar media appreciation nights held in Miri on December 10, and another in Sibu later in December.

A Sunday weekend market has started in Miri at Coco Cabana from 12.00pm to 7.00 pm on November 18, December 6 and 16.

The weekend market seeks to encourage local entrepreneurs and craftspeople to exhibit and sell, with wares such as antique collections, DIY accessories, arts and crafts, beauty products, apparel and homemade food offered for sale.

It makes  an interesting outing for locals as well as tourists, who can enjoy the seaside beauty of the Coco Cabana area, featuring  the iconic Seahorse lighthouse and  a  ‘hang out’ at the Wharf with the added appeal of the market.

For more information on the market, contact 017-222-8285.

Kuching has been chosen to host the 10^th Asian Bird Fair 2019,

This is an annual event created to highlight the different bird species in Asia and to promote the protection of birds and their habitats, encourage bird watching and other ecotourism activities.

Sarawak has the most number of Important Bird Areas (IBA) in Malaysia, with over 600,000 hectares of totally protected areas and a great portion of the 650 endemic Bornean bird species are found here.

Meanwhile, Sarawak delegates comprising representatives from the Sarawak Tourism Board, Sarawak Convention Bureau and the Kuching Bird Watching Club will  attend the 9^th Asian Bird Fair to be held in Chiayi, Taiwan  on November 16-20.

Visit the Sarawak booth located number 38 and 39 at the fair to update yourself on birding opportunities in Sarawak and to obtain more information about the State.

For more information on birding in Sarawak, visit https://sarawaktourism.com/attraction/birding-sarawak-malaysia/

The Sarawak Craft Festival has brought 100 craft entrepreneurs from throughout the country to the banks of the Sarawak River, from October 26 to November 4.

There are 82 entrepreneurs participating from Sarawak, in addition to eight participants from Sabah, one from Terengganu, three from Kelantan, two from Selangor, one from Melaka, one from Perak and three from Negeri Sembilan.

This festival is being held in conjunction with the Kuching Waterfront Festival 2018, and coincides with the International Dragon Boat Race (October 26-28) and the Sarawak Regatta (November 2-4), which is also being held at the Kuching Waterfront.

Some of the wares on sale include textiles, jungle produce, ceramics, beadwork, accessories, metals and various other crafts.

The Sarawak Craft Festival aims to encourage Malaysians, especially the youth, to appreciate and use locally-made craft products as part of their lifestyle.

Rainforest World Music Festival (RWMF) participated in the 24^th edition of Womex – The World Music Expo at Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain from Oct 24–28.

With such a positive enquiries from international bands and artistes, it comes as no surprise that Sarawak can become a key market to music lovers all over the world”, said STB Events and Corporate Relations director Angelina Bateman.

Attending the event with the RWMF organising staff were award-winning Sarawak band and two-time RWMF star group, Nading Rhapsody, who are known for their blend of traditional and contemporary Sarawak music.

Represented by Royston Kulleh and Azhfar Raimi, Nading Rhapsody hoped to gain as much international  experience as possible from this renowned world music expo.

“Attending Womex is a big step for us and an opportunity to promote the unique music from Sarawak,” said Royston Kulleh. He and Azhfar Raimi represented Nading Rhapsody at the expo.

RWMF has garnered international recognition in the 21 years it has been held, with over 20,000 festival goers attending in 2018

The Sarawak Tourism Board believes in giving Sarawakian music artistes opportunities to perform at an international level as RWMF continues to bring in global music audience, as well as facilitating their presence in the international world music scene.

“STB provides an avenue for representatives to attend this international event with us and promote themselves on the international music scene, in the hope that they would be able to perform on  their own at international events outside Malaysia and prove that Sarawak has something unique to offer in terms of music and culture,” said Angelina Bateman, STB Director of Events and Corporate Services, as well as organising director of the RWMF.

Womex which has travelled all over Europe since 1994 is recognised as the most important international professional market of world music.