Fam tours are always exciting and fun. It affords the participants the opportunity to admire the beauty of the place, the fascinating historical landmarks whose buildings oftentimes bring stories that can never be told in a day and experience the rich, diverse culture of its people from traditional backgrounds and different ethnic groups.
Our recent fam tour was to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on the invitation of Cebu Pacific Airways and Tourism Malaysia, in conjunction with the 2010 Malaysia Mega Sale Carnival that kicked off last July and runs until Sept. 16
A total of 119 participants of journalists, crewmembers from five TV stations, and travel specialists from Australia, Bangladesh, Belgium, Brunei, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Nepal, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, Yemen and the Philippines comprised the fun/fam group.
This year’s biggest sale carnival brings a whole range of bargains from home- grown products, exclusive designer goods, exotic local handicrafts, the latest gadgets and enticing dining experiences to fabulous holiday packages. Many of the retail goods are tax-exempt or duty-free.
The highlight of the tour, and surely the most anticipated, was the exclusive Media Shopping Mall Race at Sunway Pyramid Complex. Each team was given a set of 50 questions whose answers were to be found in the different boutiques and stalls spread over five retail levels. Some questions were trivial though most needed imagination, business acumen, calculation and common sense. The Philippine team represented by media from the Visayas and Mindanao finished the race way before the cut-off time.
The awarding ceremony was held at the Sun and Surf Café at Sunway Hotel and Resort. While our team was a little confident, admittedly, we also had our reservations about winning. After a superb buffet dinner, the winners were announced. Participants from Yemen came in third while Australia placed second — and the champions were the Philippine team. Beaming with pride and elation, we all gathered to claim our prize, a huge basket filled with goodies.
The Mega Fam program is part of Tourism Malaysia’s promotional strategy to create greater awareness of Malaysia as a tourist destination. Its main objective is to offer the participants a personal experience of the attractions, tourist destinations, products and services in Malaysia in order to develop tour packages and generate publicity in the country as a preferred destination for business, pleasure, leisure, fun and entertainment.