After travellers returned to Singapore big time in 2022, the nation’s authorities expect visitor numbers to rise even more significantly in 2023 – in fact, to double last year’s arrivals.
According to the Singapore Tourism Board (STB), international visitor arrivals hit 6.3 million in 2022, which is down 33 per cent on 2019 levels, but well above its forecasted figure of between 4 and 6 million visitors.
This year, it anticipates visitor arrivals to reach around 12 to 14 million visitors and to generate some S$18 to S$21 billion in tourism receipts, which is about two-thirds to three-quarters less than 2019 levels.
Driving this will be the return of air capacity into the country and the gradual reopening of China.
Tourism receipts from last year are expected to reach around S$14 billion (AU$15 billion), which is down about 50 per cent on 2019 spend. But STB says it does expect tourism activity to recover to pre-pandemic levels by 2024 barring any unforeseen events.
Aussies play big part
Key markets Indonesia (1.1 million visitors), India (686,000) and Malaysia (591,000) drove travel’s return in Singapore.
However, Australia was also a key market for the Southeast Asian destination last year – and will likely be again moving forward – with Australia among the top three revenue-generating markets.
In 2022, Australian travellers generated S$633 million (AU$685 million) in tourism receipts for Singapore, just behind the biggest spenders Indonesia and India, who contributed S$1.1 billion and S$704 million respectively. This revenue excluded touring, entertainment and gaming.
According to STB, visitors are also spending more time in the country compared to pre-Covid, with the average length of stay for April to December 2022, following the easing of travel restrictions, around 4.8 days, compared to 3.4 days for the same period in 2019.
“Our 2022 tourism performance underscores Singapore’s appeal as a leading business and leisure destination for post-pandemic travellers,” Singapore Tourism Board CEO Keith Tan said.
“To sustain our growth in 2023 and beyond, we will expand our partnerships, build up a rich year-round calendar of events, ramp up investment in new and refreshed products and experiences, and continue to support industry efforts to build the capabilities they need to meet consumer demands.”
