KINABALU: Kota Kinabalu has been lined up alongside other world famous cities as among the top 10 most trending destinations for 2023.
According to Booking.com report, it said that Kota Kinabalu is among the ultimate travel hotspots for travellers this year.
The online booking agency which is one the world largest among others mentioned that Kota Kinabalu is a hidden gem surrounded by rainforest and sandy beaches as well as home to unique wildlife and not forgetting the views of Mount Kinabalu.
The other cities that joined Kota Kina- balu on the trending list are Sao Paulo (Brazil); Budva (Montenegro); Puducherry (India); Queretaro (Mexico); Bolzano (Italy); Kalabaka (Greece); Santa Fe (USA); Olomouc (Czech Republic); and Hobart (Australia).
The encouraging trending worldwide on Kota Kinabalu also calls for the Kota Kina- balu International Airport (KKIA) to pro- vide a first-class services for travellers, said the Sabah Association of Tour and Travel Agents (Satta).
Its Chairman Dato’ Seri Winston Liaw said since the influx of tourists to Sabah are mainly via air passage, this means KKIA is quite an important terminal.
He said all these personnel play a crucial role to welcome the visitors with a friendly smile to make the visitors feel like home.
“For the tourists, the first contact point is the airport. Therefore, the first people they would meet are our frontliners such as immigration, customs and airlines personnel,” said Liaw.
Liaw also urged the airport authority to make sure the baggage arrival service is efficient and all the airport’s facilities are functioning.
He said Sabah depends largely on tourist arrivals and spending to speed up the revival of the state’s economy as 95 per cent of the tourism players are Sabahans.
