Singapore Remains One of the Most Favorite Destinations for Indians

Visitor arrivals from India in Singapore hit a record high for the third time in a row, with 1.27 million visitors arriving in the country in 2017. The destination continues to be one of the favorite places to visit for Indians, the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) said.

In 2016, over 1.1 million Indian visitors went to Singapore. For 2017, the top 10 visitor arrival (VA) markets for Singapore were China, Indonesia, India, Malaysia, Australia, Japan, Philippines, South Korea, United States and Vietnam, STB said in a statement.

“The top three largest markets for visitor arrivals were China, Indonesia, and India. Notably, India up by 16 per cent, saw the highest growth rate and, together with China, up by 13 per cent, contributed to the bulk of the growth in visitor arrivals,” the statement said.

Regional director, SAMEA, Singapore Tourism Board, GB Srithar thanked Indian travelers for the record 1.27 million people visiting Singapore in 2017. “We are happy that Singapore continues to be perceived as one of the must-visit destinations. This year, STB will focus on deepening and expanding our partnership with our travel trade partners and promoting our new brand creatively and effectively,” he said, reported Outlook.

According to STB, the cruise industry also grew last year. In 2017, passenger throughput increased by 17 per cent to 1.38 million, a record high. The total number of ship calls also rose by 3 per cent to reach 421, of which 16 were maiden calls.

In the cruise segment, India was the top source market for VA. As many as 127,000 Indians availed the cruise services and took off from the shores of Singapore in 2017. There was a year-on-year increase of 25 percent from 2016, according to reports.

The STB introduced a new brand for Singapore last year – Passion Made Possible. The brand connects Singapore with the international audience on a deeper level through authentic stories and representations about the country and Singaporeans.

“The new destination brand was launched in Singapore in August 2017, followed by 17 overseas markets through consumer activations, trade events, industry partnerships, and global marketing campaigns featuring campaign films and visuals,” the statement said.

The STB reported a second consecutive year of record tourism performance. Tourism receipts rose by 3.9 per cent to S$26.8 billion due to growth in visitor arrivals across all top 10 markets and higher visitor arrivals from high-spending markets such as China, South Korea, United States and United Kingdom. Visitor arrivals increased by 6.2 per cent to 17.4 million.

“The combined efforts of STB and our industry partners yielded strong results, against a context of better-than-expected global economic recovery, continued growth in Asia-Pacific travel and increased flight and cruise connectivity to Singapore,’ said Chief Executive of Singapore Tourism Board Lionel Yeo.

Overseas leisure tourism in India is also set to rise in the coming years. A report in February this year revealed that by 2025, 13.9 million leisure departures can be expected, leading to 19.4 million Indian visitor arrivals overseas, with a major contribution coming from tier two and three cities.