According to figures from the Singapore
Council of Tourism, more than 30 000 Russian tourists visited the republic from
January to April in 2012, which is 29% more than analogical indicators from
2011. With these results, Russia
takes fourth place amongst European countries from which visitors came to this
government-city, right behind England,
Germany and France. Most
tour operators also point out the rise in interest towards Singapore, however according to their data, the
City of the Lion is still mostly in demand as part of a tour package with other
countries in South East Asia.
The director of marketing of the
“Solvex-Travel” company Natalia Rotmistrova names some of the most popular
combination tours these days: Singapore
and Bali, Malaysia
and Thailand.
“The city is interesting, first and fore most because of its contemporary
architecture and dynamic lifestyle, and also for its many shopping
opportunities. But there is really no reason to go there for an entire week.
It’s a great transit point from Russia
into Asia. It’s a really convenient direction
to master especially in conjunction with Singapore, and the very successful
airflight program provided by Singapore Airlines helps to promote it”, -
explains Ms Rostmistrova. According to her words, when flying with a stopover,
tourists usually stay in the city around one or two days – on the way to their
holiday destination or on the way back. For example, the cost of such a trip,
in combination with a beach holiday in Bali
for 12 days will come to around $4600 for two people. According to the
company’s statistics, over the past years Singapore is showing a steady increase
in turnover. During the past 7 months from November 2011 the growth on this
direction was 15%.
According to the head of the direction of
the company “Vand International Tour” Natali Minorskaya,
Singapore has the reputation
of being one of the best cities for MICE-tourism in Asia.
The growth in the number of business trips in relation to the previous year
make up around 50%, points out the tour operators representative. By the words
of Ms Minorskaya, the fact that you can remain on Singapore’s
territory without a visa for up to 96 hours adds to its popularity amongst
tourists, and it is something they actively exploit, including those travelling
onwards to Australia and New Zealand. At
the same time, our companion from RATA-news reported that every second client
chooses a 5 star hotel. In comparison to last year, the prices for
accommodation have gone up somewhere around 15%.
The “Quinta Tour” company have expressed
that they have doubt in the possibility of Singapore becoming an independent
destination in itself. “Most tourists travel through Singapore via transit. It’s
convenient, because you can stay in this city up to 3 days without a visa.
However if you consider, that Singapore Airlines have cut their flights out of
Moscow from 7 to 5 a
week, we can hardly rely on any substantial growth in the flow of tourists,
according to this year’s results”, - as was pointed out in the specialized department
of the tour operator.