Tourplus signs MoU with ChongQing China Youth Travel Services

• Tourplus to be CYTS’ tour supplier, in preparation for post-Covid outbound travellers
• CYTS to support Tourplus with resources within Chinese tourism industry

MALAYSIAN travel tech startup Tourplus Technology Sdn Bhd has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Yubei-based ChongQing China Youth Travel Services Co Ltd (CYTS). In a statement, Rickson Goh, founder and chief executive officer of TourPlus, said the MoU places Tourplus as the tour supplier to CYTS.

CYTS is an international travel agency with outbound tour group qualifications issued by China’s National Tourism Administration. A full-fledged agency, the company claimed to operate both international and domestic tourism services covering a global scope.

This includes organising foreigners, overseas Chinese, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan compatriots to come to China for inbound tourism, sightseeing reception.

The organisation also organises outbound travel and domestic travel for Chinese citizens, hotel reservations and conference and exhibition services, it said.

“The partnership between Tourplus and CYTS is to prepare for post-Covid China travellers coming into Malaysia and Asean countries,” Goh said. “The MoU states that Tourplus will be the tour supplier to CYTS to promote travel in the China market through both online and offline channels.”

Goh said although historically, the market size pre-Covid into the country from China is huge, Tourplus plans to start off modestly and aim at targeting 100,000 Chinese travellers inbound, with a target revenue of US$2.44 million (RM10 million) via this partnership.

China is experiencing a rebound in domestic tourism market. The China Tourism Research Institute predicts that in the first half of 2021, the number of domestic tourists will reach 1.722 billion person-trips, and the domestic tourism revenue will reach 1.28 trillion yuan (US$197 billion)

According to Tourplus, the market size of Chinese outbound visitors into Malaysia was three million on an annual basis looking before the Covid-19 pademic.

Goh said however domestic tourism in Malaysia is still in limbo, though Tourplus is optimistic that the market will rebound post-Covid and beyond 2021.

“In 2020, the global tourism industry was hit hard by the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and China’s tourism industry was highly affected. In order to better seize the opportunity of China outbound tourism in the post-Covid era, and better contribute to the ‘Belt and Road’ we seek the opportunity to cooperate with a leading Malaysian based travel tech, Tourplus,” said Chen Wei Dong, chairman of CYTS.

CYTS will support the collaboration with their resources within the tourism industry in China, including providing Tourplus support for brand empowerment, product operation and resource integration, it said.

“This collaboration is to kick start Tourplus’ business development in China,” said Chen “We are looking forward to more Chinese tourists travelling to Malaysia for sightseeing, culture exchange and bringing more business opportunities between the people of China and Malaysia.”