Melaka as Indonesian tourist gateway: Responding to global challenges

Malacca and the Indonesian island of Sumatera has a long history of strategic networking by way of trade, culture, religion and social activities of their peoples. With tourism being a mainstay of Malacca’s economy the potential of enhancing tourism activities between the Malaysian state and its Indonesian neighbour is there for the taking. However, issues pertaining to Malacca’s tourism-led development which focuses on the roles of Malacca as a tourism gateway of Indonesians is understudied. This paper is an attempt to address one of the arising issues, namely, whether such development render benefits to both neighbours or just Malacca alone. Based on the findings of a field study conducted in Melaka and Indonesia’s Riau - Dumai, and set within the context of the formation of an ASEAN community by 2015, it was found that both states had benefitted from the increased flows of tourist arrivals, services and goods and from exchanges of culture and the arts.