LANGKAWI: Despite reports of low hotel occupancy and sluggish tourist arrivals during the Malaysia Day school holidays, checks at ferry terminals to the island as well as with government agencies and industry players indicate otherwise.

At both the Kuala Kedah and Kuala Perlis terminals today, ferry traffic into Langkawi remained strong even as the holiday period drew to a close.

Langkawi resident Ahmad Ikhtidar Ikhsan Jamili, 27, said he faced difficulty securing tickets to return home after visiting his family on the mainland.

"I expected it to be difficult to get return tickets, so I booked early. But even then, it was surprisingly hard because the bookings filled up quickly. The terminals were congested as expected," he said when met at the Kuala Perlis terminal.