The number of domestic visitors also surged to 58.6 million in the period, up 19% over the same quarter last year.

“For a quarter-on-quarter comparison, domestic visitors increased 6.5% over the fourth quarter of 2023,” the department said in a statement today.

Chief statistician Uzir Mahidin said domestic tourism performance in Malaysia saw a sharp upturn in 2023, with total spending of RM84.9 billion compared to RM64.1 billion in 2022.

“The significant hike in expenditure was attributed to the astounding 34.4% increase in the number of tourists and 29.7% in excursionists,” he said, adding that visitors spent on shopping, food and beverages, and fuel.

Uzir said visiting friends and relatives was the primary reason for domestic tourism, totalling 33.6% of travel, but it dropped from the pre-pandemic high of 42.3%.

He said Selangor was the most visited state in 2023, attracting 27.6 million domestic visitors, followed by Kuala Lumpur and Sarawak, with 22.2 million and 17.9 million domestic visitors, respectively.

He also noted that visitors to Johor shot up 42.7% to 8.92 million, against 6.25 million tourists in 2022.