PUTRAJAYA, June 16 — Malaysia’s domestic tourism sector continued its upward trajectory in 2025, with domestic visitor expenditure rising 13.6 per cent to RM121.3 billion from RM106.7 billion in 2024, according to the Domestic Tourism Survey 2025 released by the Statistics Department (DOSM) today.
Chief statistician Datuk Seri Mohd Uzir Mahidin said the rise was driven by higher spending among both tourists and excursionists, which grew 14.6 per cent and 12.2 per cent, respectively.
Tourists remained the largest contributors to domestic tourism spending, accounting for 59.5 per cent of total visitor expenditure.
The stronger spending trend coincided with an increase in domestic travel activity, with the number of domestic visitors rising 11.5 per cent to 290.1 million in 2025 compared with 260.1 million in 2024.
“The average length of stay also edged up to 2.56 nights from 2.49 nights in the preceding year. The increase reflects a stronger propensity among travellers to participate in domestic tourism activities and spend longer periods at destinations within the country,” Uzir said in a statement today.
He attributed the sector’s strong performance to heightened travel demand during major festive and holiday periods, including Chinese New Year, Aidilfitri, Deepavali, Christmas, and school breaks.
State-level tourism campaigns also helped stimulate interstate travel and tourism spending, with cultural and tourism events such as Kaamatan in Sabah and Gawai Dayak in Sarawak contributing to increased visitor movements and tourism-related economic activities.
Large-scale concerts, festivals, exhibitions and sporting tournaments further encouraged domestic travel, while Malaysia’s hosting of several ASEAN meetings and programmes boosted business-and-event travel nationwide.
Land transport remained the preferred mode of transport, accounting for 97.5 per cent of domestic trips in 2025.
For accommodation, staying with relatives and friends continued to be the most popular choice, representing 56.2 per cent of tourists.
However, the use of paid accommodation increased to 43.8 per cent in 2025 from 39.6 per cent in 2024, with hotels remaining the leading option at 23.1 per cent.
Selangor remained the country’s most visited destination with 36.4 million visitors, followed by Kuala Lumpur with 35.1 million visitors and Perak with 23.6 million.
Uzir said the growth in visitor arrivals, spending and length of stay showed that domestic tourism continues to play an important role in supporting economic growth and local development.
