PETALING JAYA, March 28 — The future looks bleak for domestic tourism if teenagers and young adults in our survey had their way. 

Out of 60 respondents in Penang, Perak and here, only 10 had interest in visiting a state in the country. The rest want to go abroad and the most popular choices are Korea and Australia. 

A 14-year-old said he wanted to expand his horizons by visiting a country like Australia as it would give him the chance to experience an entirely different place.

“It is not that local travel is uninteresting but I would like to experience something  that I cannot find here,” he said. 

Tan Xi Wen, 21, said: “I want to go Korea just to see how good-looking the guys are!”

She said she had been to five states with her family and was not keen to see the rest of the country as she believed they were all pretty much the same.

Another student, Mervyn Yong, 15, said he would like to travel to the US to experience the culture there.

“Travelling is about experiencing new things, and if I were given the chance I would head to the US to observe their lifestyle and visit some of the famous attractions I see in movies,” he said. 

Sandra Balentia Engkasan, 22, wants to travel to the United Kingdom to polish her English.

“I have a strong interest in learning and speaking English, but Malaysia doesn’t give me the right environment to do that,” said Sandra.

She said she would receive criticism and stares, especially in school, whenever she spoke in English.

“They think I am arrogant and a show-off, which is not true.”

Those who preferred to travel locally believe there was still much of Malaysia to discover and love especially the different cultures. 

Ching Shu Yi, 16, felt that local destinations still had an edge over overseas attractions.

“I’ve been to China and Singapore but I still prefer Penang. 

“Local destinations, where one feels more at home, are lively and interesting,” she said.

Bernard Cheang, 17, agreed there was much to be appreciated locally.

“Although I was born in Thailand, I still feel a deep connection to Malaysia and its unique attractions. 

“Sometimes, youngsters my age tend to think foreign countries are better. 

“Perhaps they are influenced by Korean, Japanese or American culture,” he said.