LAHAD DATU, Aug 15 — W Bay Payang, located at Jalan Silam, here, is poised to be the next boating hub in Sabah and to boost domestic tourism.
Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister, Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri said the area, for example, has become one of the world-renowned yachting rally stops for the Sail Malaysia Passage to the East Yacht Rally 2022 event.
“Each yacht that arrives in Malaysia spends on average, RM200,000 per year. The average stay for those arriving with Sail Malaysia is 730 days, and we see many boats that arrived in 2019 are still here,” she told reporters after launching the Sail Malaysia event, here, today.
W Bay Payang has become a two-day location stop from yesterday for 18 yachts of Sail Malaysia that involves nationalities from Australia, Japan, Germany, New Zealand, Canada, Sweden, Ireland, France and Thailand.
Nancy reminded the tourism agencies and businesses to be aware that there would be more traffic coming in the future once the boating hub has become a reality.
“The economic benefit for Malaysia is enormous and there is much more to be tapped. The boating industry alone is expected to grow annually at 4.7 per cent compounded annual growth rate until 2030 to USD60 billion and this is boat sales only, and does not include the services sector and the leisure industry (including tourism) that will have an impact of up to USD500 billion by 2030.
“We must be prepared as Southeast Asia is earmarked as one of the growth areas of boating in the medium term, and eastern Sabah is one of the best cruising (sailing) grounds in the world where it also links to eastern Kalimantan and Raja Ampat, making this area one of the most sought-after destinations in boating,” she said.
Nancy also said that Lahad Datu could be the new tourism hotspot in Sabah for tourists who craved for different tourism experiences within the travelling time and distance.
“Sailors or tourists can spend more time in Lahad Datu, which offers the best of two worlds; land and sea experiences that include Irunji aqua tourism, the Tabin Wildlife Reserve and British Tobacco Warehouse in Segama as tourism attractions.
“Also, the Eastern Sabah Security Command (ESSCom) has been effective in maintaining safety of the eastern Sabah waters.
“With ESSCom at the helm of security here, tourists need not worry as long as they know the right protocol, be it travelling here by sea or air,” she said.
The Sail Malaysia rally of over 3,000 nautical miles and covering most of the Malaysian coastline involves 17 stops from Langkawi and finishing at Tawau on Aug 26.
