KUALA LUMPUR: Starting from tomorrow (Sept 16), the Health Ministry has made it compulsory for those who wish to visit Langkawi to get themselves tested for Covid-19 before making their trip to the island.
The Crisis Preparedness and Response Centre (CPRC) today said that visitors must take either the polymerase chain reaction (Rt-PCR) or the antigen rapid (RTK-Antigen) swab test at any public or private healthcare facilities within 48 hours before they depart for Langkawi.
"They must bring along the test result to be checked at the departure points, either at the airport or the ferry terminal. Visitors can also buy the self-test (saliva) kit and bring it to the airport or the ferry terminal to conduct the test at designated screening areas made available or buy the self-test kit at the designated screening areas," the ministry said.
It was reported that tourism operators were seeing a surge in booking enquiries into Langkawi holiday packages ahead of the tourism bubble programme for vaccinated travellers, which starts tomorrow (Sept 16).
Tropical Charters chief executive officer and Langkawi Business Association deputy president Datuk Alexander Isaac said tour operators had been inundated with booking enquiries.
The National Security Council and Langkawi Development Authority under the Mysafe Travel's Ceria programme, he said, had carried out a five-day course for all tour, holiday agencies and food and beverage operators to provide training on standard operating procedures' (SOP) requirements.
Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri was quoted as saying that the travel bubble initiative to be implemented in Langkawi would serve as a benchmark for opening more tourist destinations in the country.
In this regard, she urged those who were planning to travel to Langkawi for a holiday to be responsible tourists and follow the prescribed SOP because their actions would decide the fate of the country's tourism sector.
"We want to see how (the reopening of) Langkawi will impact the entire economic sector, especially the tourism sector."
