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Malaysia received 10.6 million tourists, up 5% year-on-year, enabling it to retain its position as the most visited country in Southeast Asia.
Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Tiong King Sing said while visitor numbers from the Middle East declined, there was a slight increase in visitors from Asian and European countries, Malay Mail reported.
Thailand remained the second most-visited country with 9.3 million arrivals, a year-on-year decrease of 2.3%, Bangkok Post reported.
Ongoing conflict‑related airspace closures in the Middle East have forced airlines to reroute or cancel flights on major Europe-Asia corridors, increasing the cost of travel to Thailand.
The country could receive three million fewer foreign visitors in 2026 if the war persists for six months, Natthriya Thaweevong, permanent secretary at the Ministry of Tourism and Sports, said.
Vietnam remained a bright spot in the region with 6.76 million foreign arrivals, the highest quarterly figure ever recorded and a 12% increase year on year, driven by a surge in tourist numbers from China and India.
Singapore's arrivals increased by 2.8% year-on-year to 4.4 million in the first quarter.
Indonesia received 3.44 million visitors, up 8.62% and marking the country’s strongest quarterly performance since 2020, driven largely by visitors from neighboring countries as the Middle East crisis discouraged long-haul travel.
The Philippines got 1.76 million visitors, up 2.6%.
