Singapore may welcome up to 14m visitors in 2023, government say

The Singapore Tourism Board said the figure could at least double the 6.3 million achieved in 2022.

Singapore.- The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) has issued a press release announcing in 2022, the country’s international visitor arrivals reached 6.3 million, exceeding its initial forecast of between 4 and 6 million visitors.

Keith Tan, Chief Executive, Singapore Tourism Board (STB), said: “Our 2022 tourism performance underscores Singapore’s appeal as a leading business and leisure destination for post-pandemic travellers. 

“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.”

Most of the visitors in 2022 came from Indonesia (1.1 million), India (686,000) and Malaysia (591,000). Tourism receipts reached SGD8.96bn between January to September 2022.

The government also reported the top tourism receipts generating markets were Indonesia, India and Australia, which contributed SGD1.1bn, SGD704m, and SGD633m respectively (excluding Sightseeing, Entertainment and Gaming).

As for 2023, STB expects international visitor arrivals to reach around 12 to 14 million visitors, bringing in approximately SGD18.00bn (US$13.62bn) to SGD21.00bn in tourism receipts – around two-thirds to three-quarters of the levels in 2019.

Authorities stated that to support tourism recovery, “STB will front load SGD110m of the SGD500m set aside for Singapore’s tourism recovery to ramp up business and leisure events over these two years.”

Singapore was one of the first countries in the region to relax Covid-19 measures. The country currently hosts two casino resorts: Resorts World Sentosa, operated by Genting Singapore Ltd; and Marina Bay Sands, run by a unit of Las Vegas Sands Corp.