A noble dude from TheStar has shown us that Malaysia offers the cheapest rates for taxis, hotels, restaurants and apartment rent. We beat the likes of Bangkok, New York, London, and Tokyo (quality is a different story, needless to say). This makes us the “price leader” in marketing terms, offering something for the lowest price with little or no compromise to its functionality.

But is this entirely a good thing? The way I see it, it’s both good and bad.

The statistics half-surprised me, that we are less expensive with a considerable margin. The bright side is that whoever managed to discover Malaysia will probably see it as an Asian getaway spot with affordable stuff on the plate. Vacationers who sees this tourism expenses comparison table will definitely think twice before going to New York or London.

What are we waiting for? Lets go to KL! Its easier on our pockets after all. But wait, wouldn’t it look to good to be true? Would this comparison table make us ‘affordable’ or ‘cheap’? Does the quality of our products/service match those of the other capitols or is it as low as its sold for?

It is pretty hard to clearly differentiate that at this point but I reckon that there would be Westerners (who generally don’t know enough about Malaysia) that will forgo Malaysia as a tourism spot largely due to the name itself. It doesn’t matter if it costs less, its the totality of the idea of coming here. Eg: a billionaire compares Gucci and Billabong.

I know this is arguable. But would you choose Ramli burger if you can easily afford a Burger King? What do you think?