TY  - JOUR
T1  - Heritage Tourism in Malaysia: Potential and Challenges
AU - Ramli, Zuliskandar 
JO  - The Social Sciences
VL  - 12
IS  - 3
SP  - 431
EP  - 440
PY  - 2017
DA  - 2001/08/19
SN  - 1818-5800
DO  - sscience.2017.431.440
UR  - https://makhillpublications.co/view-article.php?doi=sscience.2017.431.440
KW  - Tourism
KW  -heritage
KW  -Mulu National Park
KW  -Kinabalu National Park
KW  -Lenggong Valley
AB  - Tourism is one of the industries which is developing rapidly, not only in Malaysia but all around the
world. According to the annual research report of The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), together
with its strategic partner, Oxford Economics, Travel and Tourism’s in 2013, it was revealed that the tourism
industry accounted for 9.5% of total world GDP (USD 7 trillion). One of the potential tourism sector in Malaysia
is heritage-based tourism. This field is not something new but the promotion for this aspect of heritage tourism
is still lacking. This heritage based tourism can involve cultural heritage (tangible and intangible) and natural
heritage. The number of tourists who visited Malaysia in 2013 amounted to 25.7 million people and a total of
28 million tourists was targeted in 2014 in conjunction with visit Malaysia Year 2014. In attracting Foreign
tourists to see the cultural diversity and natural beauty of the country hence, several products based on
heritage that are of potential are certainly sites which have been recognized by UNESCO as world heritage sites.
Among these sites are the Mulu National Park and Kinabalu National Park as world heritage sites of the natural
category while George town and Melaka as well as the archaeological site of Lenggong Valley as world heritage
site of the cultural category. According to statistics, most foreign tourists visited the city of George town and
Melaka, especially tourists from Southeast Asia while Lenggong archaeological site was found to be less
visited by foreign tourists. In the category of nature, the Kinabalu National Park is the preferred destination of
tourists compared to the Mulu National Park or the National Park in the Peninsula itself. The potential of each
of these areas or sites can be enhanced by having more vigorous promotions and solid cooperation between
the government agencies, travel agencies and non-governmental agencies involved.
ER  -