Sabah Community Based Tourism Fair

Most of us have heard about the MATTA Fair, but have you heard about the Sabah Community Based Tourism Fair? This is one of the very unique tourism fairs to take place here in Kota Kinabalu.

This community-based tourism fair was held on November 17-19, 2023, at the Suria Sabah Shopping Mall in Kota Kinabalu City.

Sabah Community Based Tourism Fair

The unique travel fair is also running for the fifth year. It is organised by the Federation of Rural Tourism Association Sabah (FeRTAS) and Sabah Tourism Board, which was launched by Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor.

The event during the launching day in Kota Kinabalu.

For this year, a special B2B session was organised where 12 tour operators under FeRTAS engaged in a Business-to-Business session with key industry players from the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (Matta), Sabah Association of Tour and Travel Agents (Satta), and Sabah Tourist Association (STA).

Who are the Rural Tourism Operators in Sabah?

1. Nabalu Tourism Association
2. Kadamaian
3. Kota Marudu
4. Lahad Datu
5. Kiulu
6. Keningau
7. Tambunan
8. Tenom
9. Penampang
10. Kuala Penyu
11. Ranau
12. Kota Belud

An elder demonstrates some craftwork at the fair.

In total, this year's Sabah Community Based Tourism Fair offered 40 booths, including participation from various tourism associations and ministries.

Even the Federal Territory of Labuan and neighbouring Brunei participated for the first time, hoping to create community-based tourism across borders.

Nabawan Tourism Association at the fair.

Sabah Community Based Tourism Fair 2023 Activities

The three-day event will host various activities, which include talks by multiple organisations and government departments. There were also cultural dance performances, traditional games, musical instrument displays, and cooking demonstrations.

Talks were conducted by;

• FeRTAS
• Sabah Homestay Association
• Sabah Handicraft Center
• Malaysian Handicraft Development Corporation
• Ministry of Agriculture
• Fisheries and Food Industry
• Sabah Parks

The Community Based Tourism Fair poster.

If you are interested in this unique experience, you can also get more information about community based tourism in Sabah, which I did in 2023 when I visited most of the rural communities around Sabah.

For first-time visitors to this part of Malaysia, you can also visit the Sabah Tourism website for further information about tourism around Sabah.

Conclusion

If you missed this year's Sabah Community Based Tourism Fair, you can look forward to the next one in 2024, which is scheduled to be bigger and have more participants. It will also be held, most likely in Kota Kinabalu.