Malaysia Reclaims Title of Most Visited Country in ASEAN

Malaysia has once again become the most visited country in the first quarter of 2026. Compared to the previous year, Malaysia achieved 10.6 million tourist arrivals this year, a 5% increase from 2025. Citing Kompas from Vn Express on Wednesday (6/5/2026), the Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture Tiong King Sing stated that the number of tourist arrivals continues to rise despite the unresolved Middle East conflict. “Although there has been a decline in the number of tourists from the Middle East, there has been a slight increase in the number of tourists arriving from Asian and European countries,” he said. Previously, Thailand held the top position and now ranks second, receiving around 9.3 million tourist arrivals between January and March, down about 2.3%. Next, Vietnam is the third country with the highest number of foreign tourists in ASEAN, with 6.76 million foreign tourists in the first quarter of 2026. This third-ranked increase experienced a 12% rise compared to before. One of the most visited places by tourists in 2026 is Johor. Johor managed to welcome around 12 million tourists with tourism revenue of RM 42.48 billion. Citing The Star, the Chairman of the State Unity, Culture and Heritage Committee, K. Raven Kumar, sees this increase in tourists and is starting to promote it through the Visit Johor 2026 campaign. In this campaign, Johor is preparing between 100 and 170 events throughout the year that can attract visitors from around the world. Raven Kumar also added that Singapore remains Johor’s largest source of tourists, followed by Indonesia, China, and India, all of which recorded an increase in the number of visitors during the January to March period. Not only that, Johor’s official tourism programme is also being distributed to various tourist spots. In collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture as well as Tourism Malaysia, there are at least 16 entry points via land, air, and sea. According to Revan Kumar’s statement, Johor will attempt to expand various tourism sectors such as zoos, heritage sites, to ecotourism by showcasing sites like Kampung Sungai Melayu, Taman Negara Tanjung Piai, and Taman Negara Gunung Ledang that attract visitors.