Malaysian gastronomy routes as a tourist destination / Artinah Zainal, Ahmad Nizan Zali and Mohd Nizam Kassim

• Main Authors: Zainal, Artinah, Zali, Ahmad Nizan, Kassim, Mohd Nizam
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Faculty of Hotel and Management, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Selangor, Kampus Puncak Alam Campus 2010
• Subjects: Travel and the state. Tourism; Malaysia; Food industry and trade. Halal food industry. Certification
• Online Access: http://ir.uitm.edu.my/id/eprint/19426/7/AJ_ARTINAH%20ZAINAL%20JTHCA%20B%2010.pdf; http://ir.uitm.edu.my/id/eprint/19426/; https://www.jthca.org/

Globally, food and tourism are increasingly being combined and the development of gastronomy as a tourism product has become a trend recently. The awareness of the importance of food as a heritage component in tourism has been steadily growing. As competition between tourism destinations in the Asia region increases, Malaysian local food and culture are a valuable source to attract tourists. Malaysian gastronomy has a significant identity, and an important role to play since food is closely related to tourist consumption and experience. The tourists’ quest for authentic tastes and experiences has been a fundamental thrust, and in practice tourism destinations strive to develop their own distinctive and unique identities. This emergent trend can be examined as most of the tourist destinations have made a great effort to promote their local cuisines. In line with this, the Malaysian gastronomy route should be in tandem with the cultural activity highlighted.