BUSTLING KUALA LUMPUR MAGNET FOR TOURISTS, SAYS SURVEY

By Muin Abdul Majid

DUBAI, Feb 22 (Bernama) -- Malaysia's bustling capital, Kuala Lumpur, has
been ranked fourth in Euromonitor International's report on Top City
Destinations Ranking 2009, ahead of such popular destinations like Paris, Hong
Kong, New York City and Dubai.

The cosmopolitan city, home to the iconic Petronas Twin Towers and a
melting pot of cultures, recorded 9.4 million tourist arrivals in 2009, Tourism
Malaysia said in a statement citing the report.

Kuala Lumpur came behind top-placed London with 14 million tourist arrivals,
followed by Bangkok (9.98 million) and Singapore (9.68 million).

Rounding out the top 10 cities were fifth-placed Antalya, followed by New
York, Dubai, Paris, Istanbul and Hong Kong.

Mecca, Islam's holiest city, came in at number 11 with 6.98 million arrivals
in 2009, according to Euromonitor International.

Tourism Malaysia noted that while total arrivals to 100 of the world's
cities fell by 3.5 per cent due to the global economic crisis, Kuala Lumpur
recorded an increase of 5.2 per cent in tourist arrivals compared to 2008.

In its report, Euromonitor International expected cities in emerging
markets to continue to steal a share of global arrivals, especially in Asia
Pacific, the Middle East and Africa.

"This shift will be accelerated by the expansion of low-cost carriers and
rising middle-classes that are travelling in ever greater numbers, especially
intra-regionally.

"Cities serving as main airport hubs are expected to benefit from this
regional movement, namely Sao Paulo, Johannesburg and Kuala Lumpur," it said.

In explaining its research methodology, Euromonitor International defined
"international tourists" as any person visiting another country for at least 24
hours, for a period not exceeding 12 months, and staying in collective or
private accommodation.

Each arrival is counted separately and includes people travelling more than
once a year and people visiting several countries during one holiday. Domestic
visitors are excluded.