Latest landmark in Langkawi

Cenang Mall is becoming a popular spot with tourists and locals.

Pix by Tunku Sherie Yusof

Shops near the front entrance of Cenang Mall on ground level.

Stalls selling jewellery on the ground floor beside the escalator.

CONVENIENT: Upscale Cenang Mall is in the heart of the tourist hub in Pantai Cenang

LANGKAWI: DOMINATING the tourist hub of Pantai Cenang is Cenang Mall, the latest upscale shopping destination here.

The latest flagship property of PL Soon Huat Realty Sdn Bhd, the mall is a two-storey complex which boasts 42 shop lots with an elevator and escalator.

This centralised location has a supermarket and six food and beverage outlets in Langkawi's prime area.

Fronting the sea on the main road in Pantai Cenang, the mall is designed to allow shoppers to shop with ease.

Cenang Mall operations manager Ernest Rawen said the new shopping centre has shifted the retail trend in the area upmarket with notable tenants such as Starbucks, Maybank, Guardian and Old Town White Coffee.

"It is in the heart of the tourists hub, a mere 10-minute drive from the Langkawi International Airport, and a 20-minute drive from Kuah town.

"It is also surrounded by motels and hotels," he said.

Cenang Mall is also about five minutes away from Pantai Tengah where the more upmarket resorts and restaurants are located.

This new landmark for Langkawi residents, and especially Pantai Cenang folk, offers the ultimate, one-stop shopping experience under one roof.

Initiatives to boost tourism in Langkawi

KUALA LUMPUR: Langkawi Development Authority (Lada), which is tasked to coordinate all efforts under the Langkawi Tourism Blueprint (2011-2015), is looking through 77 initiatives for implementation on the duty-free island.

Lada chief executive officer Tan Sri Khalid Ramli said the authority has set up a delivery management office to monitor and keep track of the implementation progress of the initiatives.

"The initiatives involve various aspects, including connectivity, flight schedules and matters pertaining to direct flights to the island, transportation and services, among others," he said, adding that the initiatives have had a positive impact on the people in Langkawi.

Speaking to reporters after the handing over of Lada's sponsorship of the Langkawi International Fishing Tournament 2012 to Joran, a unit of Berita Harian, here yesterday, Khalid said of the 77 initiatives, 15 are almost at the completion stage while others are at various stages.
"We hope in the next two or three months, we will see the physical works on some of these initiatives. Some are already completed and implemented like the board walks, which have been developed on several Langkawi islands," he said.

Khalid said the blueprint has managed to attract private investors, especially those who want to set up hotels and provide tourism-related products and services.

Under the blueprint, Langkawi is to woo investments up to RM5 billion, three million tourists and generate a revenue of RM3.8 billion by 2015.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak launched the blueprint in December last year, with the aim to bring about a major transformation on the island where the people will benefit from its development.

Najib had said that the initiatives outlined under the blueprint represented the government's pledges to the people, which were translated into systematic plans, supported by a RM420 million allocation announced in Budget 2012. The blueprint incorporates development programmes for the period 2011-2015 and contains initiatives covering three themes, namely products, infrastructure and enablers.

Langkawi tourism boom

Island set to see robust development with launch of RM5b plan by prime minister

LANGKAWI is set to usher in a second wave of tourism investments with the launch of a five-year tourism road map by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak yesterday.

The Langkawi Tourism Blueprint, which envisages RM5 billion investments in tourism projects, aims to raise annual tourist arrivals to the island to three million by 2015 from two million currently.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak taking a closer look at the
Pantai Chenang development model after the launch of the Langkawi
 Tourism Blueprint yesterday. With him are Second Finance Minister
 Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Mohamad Hanadzlah (second from left),
 Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Tan Sri Nor Mohamed
 Yakcop and Tourism Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ng Yen Yen.
Pic by Shahrizal Md Noor

This would create an additional 4,200 jobs in the tourism industry and raise tourism receipts to RM3.8 billion from RM1.8 billion.

“Langkawi’s success up until now has been great. But we need to have a strong branding for Langkawi,” Najib said.

“We also need to ensure that while we develop, we take care of the environment.

“For Malaysia to continue being a choice destination for tourists, we need to take in hand certain issues, including the need to develop our tourism products, especially the more interesting and iconic ones, and go for more focused promotions.”

Tourism is one of the 12 National Key Economic Areas under the Economic Transformation Programme (ETP). Last year, the sector contributed RM56.5 billion from 24.6 million tourist arrivals.

The blueprint is the second phase of the development plan for Langkawi, with the first begun by Najib’s predecessor, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

“In the 1980s, when (Dr Mahathir) declared Langkawi a duty-free island, Langkawi went through a tremendous growth spurt.”

The blueprint will have 14 initiatives under three themes — product, infrastructure and enablers.

Among the key elements of the blueprint are:Promoting the island’s iconic spots, such as the Langkawi Geopark, Pulau Dayang Bunting and Gunung Machinchang.

Building five five-star hotels to target highnet- worth tourists.

SETTING UP a park ranger team to ensure the conservation of tourist spots;

IMPROVING infrastructure in tourism areas to create a good first impression;

SETTING UP a tourism academy, a collaboration between the Higher Education Ministry and Taylor’s University;

IMPROVING air services and providing incentives for chartered flights to Langkawi, improving land transport services and providing a clean environment; and,

INTENSIFYING promotional efforts to make Langkawi a meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions destination.

Najib said the increase in tourist arrivals would more than double the island’s contribution to the nation’s gross national income, from RM800 million to RM1.9 billion.

He said that out of the RM5 billion, the government had allocated RM420 million under the 2012 Budget to undertake infrastructure development while the balance would come from the private sector.

Najib ordered the Langkawi Development Authority (Lada) to clean up Pantai Chenang Langkawi was recently recognised in National Geographic’s top-10 list of premier beaches in the world.

It was also declared a geopark by Unesco in 2007 Present at the launch of the blueprint were Second Finance Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Mohamad Hanadzlah, Tourism Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ng Yen Yen and Kedah Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Azizan Razak.

Ting plans multi-billion ringgit project for Langkawi

Langkawi: Langkawi's economic fortunes as a tourist destination may be enhanced if Sarawak businessman Tan Sri Ting Pek Khiing has his way.

He is proposing a reclamation of some 80 hectares of land for the region's biggest marina centre, along with residential and commercial properties.

The proposed multi-billion ringgit "Port Langkasuka" project will comprise nine parcels of land containing among others, a golf course, resort and private villas.

"A RM200 million breakwater was built in the mid-1990s as a basis for this proposed development.

"I am hopeful that we can obtain the necessary approvals from the state government to proceed," he told reporters after former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad opened the Four Points by Sheraton Langkawi Resort here yesterday.

The resort, which was previously known as the Langkasuka Beach Resort, underwent a RM30 million refurbishment prior to the rebranding.

The resort is owned by Global Upline Sdn Bhd - which also owns the Four Points by Sheraton property in Kuching, Sarawak.

Ting, who is Global Upline's group adviser, was instrumental in building Langkawi's first five-star resort Sheraton Langkawi Beach Resort 20 years ago and also the Delima Resort Langkawi.

Dr Mahathir, who during his tenure as prime minister worked closely with Ting, is raising the island's profile as a preferred tourism destination, said that the duty-free island still has a lot of potential to be developed.

"There is still a lot of potential for resorts, as we have not used the mountains (to build resorts). Since the weather is cool up there, why not build a mountain resort?

"Perhaps mountain bike racing can be introduced," he noted, and said the five-year 'hiatus' which was taken after his tenure by the authorities in promoting Langkawi, can be addressed by allocating budgets to market the island better.

"Build another port, since there is demand for it and we have many good locations where the port can be built," Dr Mahathir added.

By Marina Emmanuel