'Malaysian execs spend US$105 a night overseas'

The top three destinations visited by Malaysian business travellers were Singapore (61 per cent), Thailand (49 per cent) and Indonesia (42 per cent).

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian executives spent an average of US$105 per night while on business travels, more than what travellers from China and Indonesia allocate, according to a survey by a leading hotel operator.

The Accor Asia Pacific Business Travel Research 2012 report noted that Singaporeans spent mostly on accommodation, averaging US$156 (RM478.92) per night of US$468 (RM1,437) per trip.

The survey covered 2,500 business travellers from nine Asia Pacific countries, on their travel habits during the first half of 2012.

This year is the first time Malaysian respondents are included in the survey.

The survey found that Malaysians took more trips in the first six months of this year compared with the same period last year, with 41 per cent increase, compared with the regional average of 35 per cent.

It found that the top three destinations visited by Malaysian business travellers during the period under review were Singapore (61 per cent), Thailand (49 per cent) and Indonesia (42 per cent).

"This pattern is expected to hold true for the second half of the year, with 57 per cent of travellers planning trips to Singapore, 48 per cent to Thailand and 39 per cent expected to visit Indonesia," said Evan Lewis, the vice-president of communications (Asia Pacific) for Accor.

The average Malaysian executive took 11 trips in the first half of 2012, which is similar to the regional average.

However, Malaysian travellers took slightly more international (six) than domestic (five) trips compared to the average Asia-Pacific travellers who focused more on domestic (seven) than international travels (four).