Minister: More should be done to attract Chinese tourists to Singapore

SINGAPORE – The cruise industry should intensify efforts to link up cruise liners in the region to tap a growing market, and also do more to attract Chinese tourists to Singapore, said Senior Minister

SINGAPORE – The cruise industry should intensify efforts to link up cruise liners in the region to tap a growing market, and also do more to attract Chinese tourists to Singapore, said Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry Lee Yi Shyan.

But the various segments of the tourism sector, such as hotels and food and beverage, will have to customise their service for these tourists, he added.

People who are eloquent in Mandarin can introduce and explain places of interest, as well as โ€œunderstand their (Chinese touristsโ€™) preferences in diet, shopping and enjoymentโ€, said Mr Lee, speaking at the launch of a fundraising campaign by the Singapore Cruise Centre (SCC) on Thursday (Jul 9).

Of the 110 million outbound Chinese tourists last year, fewer than two million visited Singapore, whether by air or sea.

SCC chief executive officer Christina Siaw, who was speaking at the same event, said: โ€œOur cruise industryโ€™s growth is largely pinned on China, India and Indonesia. We are not really a big market, although our repeated travel (figures) are very high for a small country like Singapore.โ€

The cruise industryโ€™s growth in the last six months has been flat, said Ms Siaw, but she thinks prospects are good in the long term.

โ€œSouth-east Asia has the cultural diversity to attract the Chinese to cruise in this region,โ€ she said.

Aside from typical cruise liners, the SCC has ventured into courting boutique ships, which cater to wealthier travellers, said Ms Siaw. โ€œA night on boutique ships will probably cost twice or thrice as much as a night on a (cruise) ship. We court these passengers as it (will be) good for Singaporeโ€™s tourism industry.โ€

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Linda Hohnholz

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