Tourism operators told to seek new ideas to revive sector

SANDAKAN: Tourism operators have to try out new ideas to revive the tourism sector during the Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO) following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Kinabatangan-Corridor of Life Tourism Operators Association (KiTA) president Alexander Yee said this could involve working with locals to come up with new products that appealed to domestic tourists.

“We have never had such a pandemic before, so, we are clueless on how to revive the tourism sector, especially since the international borders are still closed to foreign tourists.

“But as a tourism operator myself, we (tourism operators) need to try to develop new tourism products and give it a go. It is worth the shot,” he said when met at the launch of Food Camp, a new tourism product in Sandakan.

Yee also expressed gratitude to the government for allowing the domestic tourism sector to reopen with adherence to the standard operating procedures (SOP) to combat the spread of COVID-19.

On the Food Camp located in the compound of Nature Lodge Sepilok, he said it was an idea his tour company Nasalis Larvatus Tours Sdn Bhd came up with the hope that it would appeal to people who enjoy the food market atmosphere.

He said the initial start of a tent-like structure could house seven stalls under one roof with three food trucks operating on the lodge’s roadside, as well as a playground built using recycled materials like old tyres.

“The Food Camp also gives options to people who have worked up an appetite after visiting the nearby Sepilok Orang Utan Rehabilitation Centre, Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre and the Rainforest Discovery Centre,” he said.

-- BERNAMA