BY SARAH HAFIZAH CHANDRA & AWANG MUHAMMAD SYAHMI
KUCHING: The Kuching Umrah Getaway initiative will commence in August, said Datuk Seri Abdul Karim Rahman.
The Minister of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts said the first package under the initiative is scheduled to bring pilgrims to the Holy Land on Aug 29.
He said the first phase targets to have a once-weekly flight followed by an increase of twice- and subsequently five-times weekly flights in the next phases.
“Despite delays due to the Covid-19 pandemic, we are pleased to announce that the Kuching Umrah Getaway will finally be operating. We hope that this project will be implemented smoothly and continuously.
“The first package will use Malaysia Airlines’ Kuching to Kuala Lumpur then Kuala Lumpur to Jeddah route. For the time being, we are currently in the process of obtaining landing and overflight permits for Kuching to Jeddah or Madinah from the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA), Saudi Arabia,” he told reporters at a media announcement event today.
Abdul Karim said the ministry and Sarawak Tourism Board (STB) are eager to bring in feeder flights to further strengthen Kuching as an umrah hub.
He said feeder flights will support the Kuching Umrah Getaway as there are visitors from neighbouring regions like Sabah, Kalimantan, and Brunei who would be interested in this.
“During my recent trip to Jakarta, I met with representatives from Citilink airline who explained how people from Pontianak and Medan, among others, would travel to Jakarta to catch a flight to Kuching.
“As such, it is important for us to work together with other airlines on feeder flights as we cannot rely solely on national air carriers. It will also compliment the state’s own boutique airline once it is in operation,” he said.
At the same time, Abdul Karim said there is a need for close collaboration between tour and travel agencies as well as hotels to ensure the success of the project.
He said one of the prerequisites for the pilgrims is to stay in Kuching for at least one night before departing for the Holy Land, thus creating an economic spill-over for other businesses.
“When they come back from the Holy Land, they may want to stay a day or two before departing home. These pilgrims are considered as visitors, therefore it will contribute to the number of visitors and tourists who are coming to the state,” he said.
Also present during the media announcement were the ministry’s permanent secretary Datuk Sherrina Hussaini, STB chief executive officer Sharzede Salleh Askor, ATS Global Travel and Charter chairman Datuk A Aziz Ahmad and RISE Aerospace group corporate advisor Aminuddin Zakaria.
