A study by British Airways has found that Malaysians love their holidays. Sixty-six per cent of the 2,000 respondents said they have taken two or more trips abroad in 2017. 


Commissioned by British Airways conducted a study between 20 December 2017 and 4 January 2018, it covered 11 places around the world and surveyed people between the ages of 16 and 55 from Malaysia.

The study has found that a two-week holiday seems to be off- limits to many people. The respondents said that the concern of work piling up (57 per cent), the fear to ask for that much time off (21 per cent) and the perception of being judged by colleagues (18 per cent) were the major put-offs for a longer break. Additionally, 55 per cent of Malaysians feel that taking a two-week holiday is discouraged at their workplace, and 13 per cent think that the practice is frowned upon even when company policy permits longer breaks. 


The purpose of going on a holiday is to relax and to recharge. However, close to 70 per cent of Malaysians think about work and other commitments during their holidays, while more than half of the respondents said that they felt like they hadn’t properly switched off. Hence, it is not surprising that 75 per cent of Malaysians return wishing they had spent more time at the destination while another 28 per cent wished they had taken more time off. 


On the upside, the study also revealed that 76 per cent of Malaysians have left over holiday days at the end of the year. Over 50 per cent was saving up for a holiday which they didn’t take while 49 per cent was too busy to take time off. Looking ahead in 2018, 64 per cent of Malaysians are planning for an Asian cultural break holiday while 68 per cent opt for a city break or beach holiday in Europe. Malaysians also do not mind going back to places they have visited before. Seventy per cent of the respondents have gone back to the same holiday destinations for up to five times and 14 per cent of them said that they have been back to the same places for more than six to 10 times already.