Visit Truly Terengganu 2027: Inside the State’s Big Tourism Year, the ECRL and What It Means for Kemaman

Terengganu has declared 2027 its year. With a new turtle logo, a target of more than 15 million visitors and a new electrified railway arriving just in time, the East Coast state is preparing for its biggest tourism push since its last visit year in 2017. Here is what is confirmed, what is still being planned, and what it means for the quiet south, Kemaman.

For years, Terengganu has been the part of Peninsular Malaysia that travellers meant to visit. They knew about Redang, the Perhentians and Tasik Kenyir; fewer knew how to get there easily. Tahun Melawat Terengganu 2027, branded in English as Visit Truly Terengganu 2027, is the state government’s answer: a year-long campaign designed to turn interest into arrivals, and arrivals into longer, better-spent stays.

It lands at a favourable moment: Visit Malaysia has been extended to the end of 2027, and the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) is targeting its first passenger services in December 2026. For a state long defined by distance, 2027 may be the year the distance shrinks.

A Campaign With a Turtle at Its Heart

Presenting the Terengganu Budget 2026 on 10 November 2025, Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Dr Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar announced that a Visit Terengganu Year 2027 secretariat would be formed, bringing together state agencies, state-linked companies, private industry and community representatives. Visit Malaysia 2026, he said, should be a springboard for foreign arrivals.

The brand followed in stages. On 28 December 2025, state tourism committee chairman Datuk Razali Idris announced a new tourism slogan, first reported as “True Terengganu”, to replace the long-serving “Beautiful Terengganu”, built around the theme “The Real Unique Experience”: nature, culture and experience. By July 2026, when the official logo was unveiled, the campaign wordmark read Visit Truly Terengganu 2027.

Critics online said the logo looked too much like its 2007 predecessor. The state held firm: Razali said on 12 July 2026 that the turtle had been redrawn with colour and movement, and deliberately rendered without full anatomical detail to comply with Islamic guidelines on animal imagery.

The Numbers Behind the Year

In September 2026, Razali said the state is aiming for more than 15 million visitors and tourists in 2027, driven by the campaign and by the state hosting PAS’s 73rd annual muktamar (party convention), which is expected to draw delegates from across the country. For 2026, the target is nine million; the state recorded 2.45 million tourists in the first quarter alone.

No total campaign budget has been announced. On the record are smaller allocations: RM29 million from the federal Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry (MOTAC) in 2025 and a further RM15 million in 2026 to repair island and beach facilities, including ageing jetties; and a RM5.5 million upgrade of the Kampung Budaya heritage village at the State Museum complex, described as a strategic project for TMT2027.

Riding the Visit Malaysia Wave

Terengganu’s year sits inside a national one. Visit Malaysia 2026 (VM2026) was launched by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on 6 January 2025 with a goal of 35.6 million international tourists and RM147.1 billion in tourism receipts. After conflict in West Asia disrupted flights from late February 2026, the national VM2026 committee agreed on 6 April 2026 to extend the campaign to the end of 2027. Malaysia still recorded 21.1 million international arrivals in the first half of 2026, up 2.5 per cent.

Budget 2027, tabled on 9 October 2026, gives MOTAC RM935 million, about RM235 million more than the previous year. It introduces an International and Charter Flight Matching Grant to encourage new direct flights from China, India, Central Asia and Europe, and raises the Ecological Fiscal Transfer to RM270 million, with Setiu Wetlands, Tasik Kenyir, Pulau Tenggol and Pulau Bidong named among Terengganu sites to be upgraded for eco-tourism.

Muslim-Friendly by Design

Terengganu does not hide its approach to tourism. More than 95 per cent of the state’s population is Muslim, and its official policy is Muslim-friendly, or Islamic, tourism. Every event on the state’s tourism calendar must follow its Guidelines on Entertainment, Cultural Performances, Tourism and Sport, and non-Muslim visitors are asked to dress modestly and respect local norms. Hotels have been asked to remind guests about modest swimwear. The pitch is nature, diving, food and culture, not nightlife.

For many Muslim travellers, that clarity is an attraction in itself. For everyone else, it means packing as for any conservative destination.

Flights: Domestic Today, International Ambitions

Terengganu’s main gateway is Sultan Mahmud Airport (TGG) in Kuala Terengganu. In October 2026, schedule data shows only domestic services, linking the state capital with Kuala Lumpur through AirAsia, Malaysia Airlines and Firefly. Firefly began Boeing 737 jet flights between KLIA and Kuala Terengganu on 30 August 2025. In the south, Kerteh Airport (KTE), inside the Kemaman district, is a Petronas airfield with no scheduled commercial passenger flights, so the practical gateway for Kemaman is Kuantan.

International visitors therefore connect through Kuala Lumpur, or fly to Kuantan in neighbouring Pahang, which has Malaysia Airlines flights from KLIA and services from Singapore on Scoot, and is about an hour’s drive from Chukai by taxi, e-hailing or hire car. The state has said since 2024 that it is talking to airlines about international routes, with cities such as Seoul, Osaka, Istanbul, Dubai, Doha, Melbourne and Guangzhou mentioned, but no international route to Terengganu had been announced as of October 2026. Nor has a specific airport upgrade. The new federal flight matching grant may change that; until an airline announces a route, treat it as a possibility.

The ECRL: The Railway Arriving Just in Time

Malaysia Rail Link (MRL), the project owner, said on 6 October 2026 that it is targeting mid-December 2026 for commercial operations on Phase 1 of the ECRL, between Kota Bharu and Gombak, brought forward from January 2027 at the Transport Ministry’s request so that services can begin during the year-end school holidays. Phase 1 was 98.16 per cent complete in September 2026.

After a test train ran the 519 kilometres from Gombak to Kota Bharu non-stop in 3 hours 19 minutes, MRL said an express service could make the journey in under four hours. MRL has previously estimated Kuala Terengganu to Gombak at about three hours. It plans 12 return trips a day from Monday to Thursday and 14 from Friday to Sunday. Fares were expected to be announced by the end of October 2026, with ticket sales targeted for November.

Terengganu will have six stations: Jerteh, Bandar Permaisuri, Kuala Terengganu, Dungun, Kemasik and Chukai. Journey times to the Kemaman stations and the full timetable had not been published at the time of writing.

Kemaman’s Moment

For Kemaman, the ECRL is the headline. The district gets two stations: Chukai, built for both passengers and freight, and Kemasik, for passengers, close to the twin rocks and lagoon of Pantai Kemasik. On 15 August 2026, speaking in Chukai, the Menteri Besar, who is also the Member of Parliament for Kemaman, said the state would speed up transit-oriented development around all six Terengganu stations, with MRL and Terengganu Incorporated lining up private investors. A rail spur to Kemaman Port is also part of the project.

The state has said every district should have at least one iconic event in the 2027 calendar, promoted six to twelve months ahead. In Kemaman, one event the state has already singled out is the Pesta Gagar Udang, a community festival built around traditional prawn-catching, local food and cultural performances, whose third edition was held at Dataran Ayah Sor, Bukit Mentok, in July 2026. The state says it will be developed as a community tourism product ahead of the visit year. Near Kerteh, Air Terjun Menderu, a waterfall in the Rasau Kerteh forest reserve, is being looked at for upgrades as a community-based eco-tourism site, packaged with local fruit orchards and chalets.

The classics remain the draw: sunset at Teluk Mak Nik (Monica Bay), Chukai’s old kopitiams, satar by the sea, and the resort coast at Kijal, where Resorts World Kijal (formerly Awana Kijal) says its private beach is a turtle landing site. Our weekend in Kemaman guide and Kemaman food trail have the details.

Beyond the Coast: Islands, Lake and Wetlands

The campaign’s wider promise is nature, organised into five clusters: Kuala Terengganu, beaches and islands, Kenyir Geopark, nature, and arts, culture and heritage. Expect Redang, Perhentian, Tenggol, Bidong, Tasik Kenyir and Setiu Wetlands to feature heavily. Many island resorts close during the northeast monsoon, roughly from November to February or March, so time an island trip for the drier months.

Key Dates

Date	Milestone	Status
6 January 2025	Visit Malaysia 2026 launched: 35.6 million tourist target	Done
10 November 2025	Terengganu Budget 2026: TMT2027 secretariat announced	Done
28 December 2025	New slogan announced to replace “Beautiful Terengganu”	Done
6 April 2026	National committee agrees to extend VM2026 to end-2027	Done
July 2026	Visit Truly Terengganu 2027 logo unveiled	Done
9 October 2026	Budget 2027: RM935 million for MOTAC, new flight matching grant	Done
End of October 2026	ECRL fares to be announced	Expected
November 2026	ECRL ticket sales open; MATTA Fair Terengganu	Targeted
Mid-December 2026	ECRL Phase 1 (Kota Bharu–Gombak) commercial operations	Targeted
To be announced	Terengganu 2027 events calendar launch	Pending
2027 (date TBA)	PAS 73rd muktamar in Terengganu	Announced
31 December 2027	Extended Visit Malaysia campaign ends	Scheduled

Getting There

Flying into Kuantan or Kuala Terengganu, taking the express bus, driving the East Coast Expressway or waiting for the ECRL? Our complete guide covers every route into Kemaman.

Planning a 2027 Trip: Five Practical Tips

• Wait for the calendar, then book early. The official 2027 events calendar is still being finalised. Once it is published, rooms near major events will go quickly.
• Mind the monsoon. From around November to March, the northeast monsoon brings rough seas and heavy rain. Plan island and beach days from April to October.
• Check your visa. Rules vary by nationality and can change. Confirm current entry requirements with the Immigration Department of Malaysia before you travel.
• Remember the Friday–Saturday weekend. Some shops and offices close on Friday.
• Treat targets as targets. Rail opening dates, new flight routes and event line-ups may move. Confirm with the operator before you commit.

Terengganu staged visit years in 2007 and 2017. This time, with a railway and a national campaign behind it, it has its best chance yet to become more than a place people mean to visit.

Planning to visit Terengganu in 2027? Tell us what you most want to see in the comments below.

---

Explore the magazine