21st August 2026 - 3 min read
Higher travel costs aren’t stopping Malaysians from taking holidays, with domestic trips, short getaways and longer stays all seeing continued demand.
Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) president Nigel Wong said domestic travel had become a regular part of family spending rather than something reserved for special occasions.
He also said airline ticket prices had fluctuated amid tensions in West Asia, putting pressure on travel costs, particularly for longer-haul journeys.
Data from Trip.com shows that domestic travel demand remained resilient in the first half of 2026. Domestic hotel stays averaged about 1.5 nights, according to Trip.com Malaysia general manager Stephane Thong, with one-night stays particularly common on weekdays.
Bookings for stays of six nights or more recorded the fastest year-on-year growth. Kuala Lumpur, Selangor and Penang were the top three domestic destinations among Malaysian travellers, followed by Johor, Sabah, Pahang, Sarawak, Perak, Melaka and Kedah.
Malaysians were among the top three contributors to car rental bookings in Malaysia during the first half of 2026, particularly in cities with or near airports, according to Thong.
She said the trend suggested some travellers were flying to another state before renting a car to get around during their trip. Trip.com’s car rental business also recorded double-digit monthly growth throughout the first half of 2026, with Malaysian travellers among its most active users.
Domestic hotel bookings more than doubled year-on-year during the Merdeka travel period from 28 August to 6 September, according to Trip.com data. Thong said the increase was higher than the double-digit year-on-year growth recorded for the Malaysia Day period from 12 to 20 September.
The school holidays coinciding with National Day likely helped make Merdeka a stronger travel period for families, she said.
For Malaysia Day, bookings for stays of four nights or more also recorded a mild increase, suggesting some travellers were extending their holidays around the mid-week public holiday.
Wong said Malaysians are increasingly treating domestic travel as part of their lifestyle, while new attractions, family-oriented packages, resorts and outdoor activities are giving them more reasons to explore the country.
Road trips to destinations such as Penang, Ipoh and Melaka remain popular, particularly among younger families.
Malaysia recorded 74.7 million domestic visitors in the first quarter of 2026, up 7.2% from the same period a year earlier, while domestic tourism spending reached RM34 billion, according to the Department of Statistics Malaysia.
If you’re travelling locally, you can also get some money back through a special income tax relief of up to RM1,000 for eligible domestic tourism expenses in 2026. The relief covers spending such as entrance fees to local tourist attractions and cultural programmes.
Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel for the latest money tips and updates.
Christina writes about personal finance with an eye for making the complicated feel straightforward. She is drawn to the everyday money decisions people face and genuinely enjoys finding the clearest way to explain them. Between articles, she is probably napping, on a hiking trail, or terrorising her sister’s cats.
Comments (0)