Singapore spends over $32 million to promote domestic tourism.

The Singapore Tourism Board, Enterprise Singapore, and Sentosa Development Corporation are launching the SingaporeRediscovers domestic tourism promotion campaign with a budget of S$45 million (approximately US$32.6 million). The nine-month campaign aims to encourage people to support domestic tourism and explore new things in the Lion City.

Specifically, tourists will have the opportunity to experience stays at partner hotels of the campaign, enjoy exploring emerging destinations within the city, and take advantage of a range of offers at popular attractions. Each area and cultural space is designed as a short-term travel itinerary, allowing tourists to experience the unique beauty of their homeland and enjoy a range of attractive offers.

Some of the campaign events included: the e-Great Singapore Sale on September 9th, the online Singapore Food Festival in August, and culinary workshops held in Little India and Chinatown.

Mr. Keith Tan, Director-General of the Singapore Tourism Board, said: "This campaign will be a stepping stone to redefine the concept of short-term travel, enabling citizens to enjoy a 'Singapoliday' – a short domestic holiday – and explore their own homeland, while supporting local businesses."

While encouraging domestic travel, Mr. Tan emphasized that tourism growth must go hand in hand with ensuring safety. All businesses participating in the campaign will have to adhere to strict capacity limits and social distancing measures. He stated that hotels permitted to reopen need to have enough rooms to serve as 14-day quarantine facilities for those returning from overseas. Of the more than 100 hotels that applied to reopen, over 80 have been approved for guest bookings.

Ms. Thien Kwee Eng, CEO of Sentosa Development Corporation, stated that approximately 80% of attractions, hotels, and food and beverage outlets on the island have reopened. Nearly half of the hotels designated as quarantine facilities will gradually reopen in the coming period. The remainder will be reopened in phases, in line with the economy's reopening schedule.

My Tong