Singapore Changi reinvents itself for return of business travel

Singapore’s Changi Airport, routinely voted the world’s best and a key part of the city-state’s psyche, is reinventing itself for the Covid era and beyond. In a bid to keep people engaged until life returns to normal, it’s offering glamping for families at Jewel, the nature-themed entertainment complex open to the public, as well as a host of holiday offerings from canopy park tours that involve topiary walks and bouncing on a sky net, to seasonal dining menus. With an eye further into the future, slices of the nearby Singapore Expo site are being transformed into a giant construction site as 840 guest and meeting rooms are built in short order -- part of Connect@Changi, a sprawling facility to house overseas business visitors as part of a bubble initiative. “There are more people, especially on weekends,” said Jasmine Hoon, a server at Paris Baguette, a coffee shop in Jewel selling upmarket pastries and wraps. “Sales have gone up and the vaccines are also giving people hope.” Nearby, children start making themselves at home in large white tents erected as part of the airport’s Glampcations in the Clouds initiative. People can stay overnight amid the greenery and wake to the sound of splashing water from the world’s largest indoor waterfall. Prices start from S$320 ($240) and slots have been fully booked for weeks. Story has more.<br/>