LANGKAWI: It has been a week since the school break started but things have been eerily quiet as this resort island is experiencing a sluggish start for 2023.
Malaysia Budget and Business Hotel Association (MyBHA) Langkawi chapter chairman Datuk Noorazly Rosly estimated that the visitors' arrival had dropped by a whopping 70 per cent as compared to the corresponding period prior to the pandemic era.
"We did not achieve the targeted visitors' arrival during the Chinese New Year holidays in January.
"We are seeing a similar trend now although the long school break started last week," he told the New Straits Times.
Noorazly believed the main contributing factor was the lack of ferry frequency to the island which made it difficult for visitors to plan their journey to Langkawi.
For the record, the passenger ferry service from Kuala Perlis to Langkawi for today and tomorrow have been suspended due to the low sea tide phenomenon.
It was reported that Konsortium Ferry Line Ventures Sdn Bhd, the operator of Langkawi ferry had decided to suspend the services from Kuala Perlis as it was unsafe for the ferry to ply the route since the sea level drops as much as 1.6m during the two days.
Passengers traveling to Langkawi had been advised to travel to Langkawi via the Kuala Kedah jetty terminal.
Checks on the consortium's online ticketing platform showed that only five ferry trips were offered from Kuala Kedah for the two days, with almost all trips having been fully booked.
Noorazly added that to compound matters, the number of foreign visitors' arrival to Langkawi was also far cry compared to the pre-pandemic era.
"At the moment we only have about three direct flights from Singapore. We have yet to hear about direct flights from other countries.
"Langkawi badly needs to attract foreign visitors as they contribute significantly to the tourism receipts," he said.
As such, he pleaded with the Tourism Ministry and relevant authorities to step up Langkawi promotions to rejuvenate its tourism sector.
Langkawi depends heavily on its tourism sector which contributes some 90 per cent of the island's economy, taking a severe beating during the two years of Covid-19 pandemic.
Meanwhile, checks at several tourism hotspots in this island showed a lukewarm presence of visitors.
In Dataran Lang which is one of the must-visit destinations in Langkawi, only a handful of visitors were seen visiting the site, despite being located just a stone's throw away from the Kuah Ferry Terminal.
Souvenir goods trader Rufina Sharif, 46, said the number of visitors to Dataran Lang was far less as compared to the school holiday seasons during the pre-pandemic period.
"Prior to the Covid-19 outbreak, thousands of domestic and foreign visitors visited the site during the school breaks but the situation is a stark contrast now.
"The number of visitors have dwindled drastically and so have our sales. It is tough to make a living now," she said.
Similar situation was also observed at the island's popular coastline in Pantai Chenang which usually thrives during the school break period.
Restaurateur Khamishah Saad, 43, said things were not as good as she had expected.
"I had to lay off three employees because I couldn't afford to pay their wages.
"I believe the lack of ferry trips is a major turn down for the visitors besides people are saving for the new school term expenses followed by the arrival of the month of Ramadan and Hari Raya," she said.
Rozaidi Rahim, 50, a visitor from Rawang, Selangor, concurred.
"The new school term will start in the middle of March. The fasting month too starts by the end of next month followed by Aidil Fitri.
"Hence, I think many people are saving for these occasions," he said.