‘Mersing islands comparable to Maldives’

TOURISM Johor will be making a concerted effort to highlight the beauty of Johor’s islands to tourists, says its director Sharil Nizam Abdul Rahim.

Noting that many tourists were unaware about what Johor has to offer, Sharil Nizam said the islands off the state’s Mersing district were “comparable to the Maldives” and would be promoted accordingly in the build-up to Visit Johor Year 2026.

“Some of the islands in Johor are Pulau Dayang, Pulau Helang, Pulau Aur and Pulau Besar.

“Aside from the beautiful and varied marine life, we will also be promoting the chalets and other accommodation options available for various groups,” he said in an interview.

Part of its efforts to promote tourism included collaborating with the Johor Media Club (KMJ) for a three-day, two-night scuba diving trip last month.

During the trip, seven media practitioners from various news outlets also successfully obtained their open water scuba diving licence while getting to enjoy views of the corals and marine creatures.Sharil Nizam says many tourists are unaware of the beauty of Johor’s islands.

Sharil Nizam added that one of Tourism Johor’s target markets is China, where tourists from the country can enjoy 30 days visa-free travel.

He said the state was in talks with several airline companies to introduce new direct flight routes to boost tourism arrivals.

“We have a dedicated team for such discussions, aimed at adding more flights from Senai International Airport.

“Some of the cities we are targeting are Kunming in China, Daegu in South Korea as well as Taiwan.

“Looking at our statistics, there was a high demand for such routes before the Covid-19 pandemic so we are trying to revive that to boost the state’s tourism arrivals,” said Sharil Nizam.

He added that efforts would be made to upgrade infrastructure and facilities at the state’s tourist attractions as well as improve cleanliness to give tourists a good impression of Johor.

“We want tourists to visit Johor not just once, but keep coming back,” said Sharil Nizam.