KUALA LUMPUR: The Saudi Arabia government is now offering a one-year e-visa (electronic visa) for Malaysians wishing to travel to the country beginning this month, according to Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Mohamaddin Ketapi.
He said prior to this, the Saudi government offered a three-month (90-day) visa for travel to the kingdom.
“They (Saudi Arabia) have opened their hearts and doors to us, (their) policies have also been relaxed. For Malaysian tourists going to Saudi Arabia, they only have to pay 300 Saudi Riyals (RM335.68) and they can enter and leave the kingdom within a one year period.
“They (Saudi Arabia) will also be sending officials from their tourism sector to Malaysia to learn our way of promoting tourism,” he told reporters after opening ‘The Great Steppe: History and Culture’ exhibition, here today.
Also present was his deputy, Muhammad Bakhtiar Wan Chik.
On today’s event, Mohamaddin said it was timely to attract more tourists to the country with the Visit Malaysia Year 2020.
He said the month-long exhibition which showcased various artifacts from Kazakhstan, including the Golden Man, is expected to attract 50,000 visitors.
Meanwhile, Museums director-general Datuk Kamarul Baharin A. Kasim said the exhibition was held in conjunction with the Asian National Museum Association (ANMA) conference to be held from Oct 29 to 30. — Bernama
