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| Fan Bingbing’s Ambassadorship Pays Off Big Time for Melaka — and She’s Now in the Malaysia Book of Records (Instagram) |
A year ago, Chinese superstar Fan Bingbing (范冰冰) was announced as Melaka’s official tourism ambassador — and let's be honest, the internet had thoughts. From raised eyebrows to full-on debates, folks weren’t exactly sure if the move would actually work. But fast forward to now, and it turns out that star power might just be the tourism jackpot Melaka was aiming for.
Earlier this week, Melaka’s Chief Minister, Ab Rauf Yusoh, shared that he flew all the way to Hong Kong to personally meet Fan Bingbing — not for a red carpet event, but to hand her a prestigious Malaysia Book of Records (MBOR) certificate.
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The accolade? “Largest Digital Hits for Malaysian Tourism on WeChat Platform Using Celebrity Ambassador.” That’s right — thanks to the “Malacca x Fan Bingbing” campaign, Melaka clocked a jaw-dropping 1.5 billion digital impressions on WeChat. Billion, with a B!
But it’s not just online hype. The campaign also brought real-world results. According to Ab Rauf, Chinese tourist arrivals in Melaka shot up like never before — from 204,818 visitors in December 2023 to a whopping 664,687 by December 2024. That’s more than triple the numbers in just one year, and a big part of that surge is being credited to Fan’s ambassadorship.
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“Her involvement truly catapulted Melaka into the global spotlight,” said the Chief Minister. And he’s not just talking. Melaka has now been chosen to host two major tourism events in 2025 — World Tourism Day (WTD) and the World Tourism Conference (WTC) from 27th to 29th September. While Fan’s exact involvement in helping secure those wins hasn’t been officially confirmed, Ab Rauf hinted that her impact definitely played a role.
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Fan Bingbing and her longtime Malaysian manager, Jersey Chong, have both responded with heartfelt gratitude. In a recent Instagram post, Jersey thanked the state government for their trust and praised Fan for her continued commitment to cultural exchange. “We look forward to crafting more remarkable chapters together,” he wrote — and judging by the results so far, they’re not slowing down anytime soon.
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While her appointment may have raised some eyebrows initially, there’s no denying that Fan Bingbing has made waves for Melaka — both digitally and on the ground. From MBOR honours to sky-high tourist numbers, the historic Malaysian state might’ve just pulled off one of its boldest tourism plays yet.
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So, whether you’re into iconic temples, street food, heritage buildings or, well, Bingbing herself — looks like Melaka’s firmly back on the travel radar.