Singapore expects 4m to 6m visitors in 2022; 7.1 days stay in 1H, double vs 2019

Singapore expects to welcome between 4 and 6m visitors in 2022 as the international travel industry continues to recover. The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) said Thursday Singapore recorded 1.5m visitor arrivals in the first half of this year, nearly 12 times more compared with the same period in 2021. The arrivals were driven by visitors from Singapore’s top five markets, or 56% of the overall total, in the period: Indonesia (282,000), India (219,000), Malaysia (139,000), Australia (125,000) and Philippines (81,000). Notably, the average length of stay for visitors was 7.1 days in the first half of 2022, more than doubled compared with 3.4 days in 2019. While the arrivals remain a fraction of Singapore’s pre-pandemic numbers, STB said it maintains the view that tourism flows will recover to pre-COVID levels by the middle of this decade. Tourism receipts more than tripled to $1.3b in Q1 this year, compared with the same period last year. The growth was driven by all major components including shopping and accommodation. Indonesia, India and China were the top three markets for tourism receipts excluding expenditure on sightseeing entertainment and gaming.<br/>