Johor Tourist Guides Association chairman Jimmy Leong says it is currently preparing paperwork to introduce a hop-on, hop-off tour bus service, which is expected to start early next year.
“We plan to start the tour from the zero kilometre in front of Johor Baru City Council (MBJB) office and move towards Komtar JBCC, Street of Harmony, Laman Mahkota in front of Istana Bukit Serene, Masjid Sultan Abu Bakar and back to the starting point,” he said when contacted.
Leong said the hop-on, hop-off initiative must first be backed by a government grant before it could become self-sustaining.
“The planned trips will be organised in the morning and in the evening until 6pm, with a minimum of one hour per tour.
“We have conducted the trial run, and we are currently working out the content,” Leong said.
Asked whether Johor has enough language-proficient tour guides, Leong said the state had sufficient Korean-speaking guides.
“Training guides to speak a foreign language is a long-term process because they can only become proficient through practice,” he added.
He said a large number of tour guides in the state were proficient in Japanese and Korean.
Leong added that there were currently 600 tour guides in Johor.
Tourism Johor director Sharil Nizam Abdul Rahim said the state was also planning to collaborate with event organisers experienced in hosting international events.
“We want to utilise some of the venues that we have developed with international standards to bring in more foreign visitors.
“This includes Arena Larkin Indoor Stadium and Johor Sport Complex in Mount Austin,” he added.
