Business is booming for restaurants, attractions at Sentosa

SINGAPORE : Restaurants and tourist attractions at Sentosa have enjoyed a 20 per cent increase in their business since Resorts World Sentosa opened a week ago.

Sentosa Leisure Group said it is seeing an average of 30,000 visitors each day during this Lunar New Year.

That is twice more than the daily average.

Sentosa Leisure Group added that the Merlion is its top attraction during the Lunar New Year.

It has seen a 30 per cent increase in visitors, compared to the same period last year.

And visitors to the island are also staying an average of one day as compared to half a day before.

Hotels like Rasa Sentosa Resort are also welcoming more visitors.

Rasa Sentosa is fully booked during this Lunar New Year period.

Anticipating more visitors to the island, it has decided to close for renovations for 10 months to add new rooms and facilities.

Ben Bousnina, general manager, Rasa Sentosa Resort, said: "(Now that) Resorts World has arrived...I do not think we will have enough rooms on the island, because the whole world would like to come to Sentosa Island which has become a world's destination."


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Lucy Ong appointed as Tourism WA's Marketing Manager for Singapore & Malaysia

Tourism Western Australia’s marketing representation agency in Singapore and Malaysia, Xzodus, has appointed Ms Lucy Ong to the role of Marketing Manager – Singapore and Malaysia.

No stranger to the travel trade, Lucy was the Regional Marketing Manager – South East Asia for VisitBritain (formerly British Tourist Authority) for 11 years before leaving the industry in 2007 for a temporary family relocation to the USA.

During her time with Visit Britain, she played a key role in raising the profile of Britain through comprehensive joint marketing and training programs with the trade and media as well as undertaking research on the needs of the SE Asian travellers into Britain. She was also responsible for organising Destination Britain, a major trade event attracting over 200 Asia Pacific buyers and US sellers.

In addition, she played a key role in winning a Marketing award for the Singapore office for the Shop-Till-You-Drop campaign ran in conjunction with Maison de la France.

A graduate from the National University of Singapore in Business Administration, Lucy will be responsible for the overall management of TWA’s marketing activities in the Singapore and Malaysia markets. She joins the Xzodus team of Senior Consultants, Lee Ee Lian and Selena Oh, Marketing Executives Anne Chen (Singapore) and Jenny Chan (Malaysia), who work on the Tourism WA account.


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Singapore's first casino set for partial opening

Singapore's first casino-resort is set to partially open Wednesday, a key part of a government plan to reduce reliance on manufacturing and brand the tightly controlled city-state as a cosmopolitan Asian capital.

Resorts World Sentosa, built by Malaysia's Genting Bhd for 6.6 billion Singapore dollars ($5 billion), will open 1,340 rooms in four hotels, including a Hard Rock hotel and a property designed by architect Michael Graves.

A Universal Studios theme park will likely open next month on the sprawling 49-hectare complex on Sentosa, an island a quarter of a mile off Singapore's coast.

The resort's casino, the city-state's first, is expected to open in March after Genting's application for a license was delayed to December from October when gambling authorities asked for more information. Officials have said it will probably take three months to process the license.

Singapore -- known for its ban on chewing gum sales and canings for crimes some countries would rule as minor -- strictly controls public speech and assembly though has become socially more liberal and allowed greater artistic freedom in recent years. The decision to allow casinos followed a rare national debate though the government's desired outcome was never in doubt.

The government expects Resorts World -- along with the expected May opening of the Marina Bay Sands casino resort -- to increase the country's gross domestic product growth growth by up to 1 percentage point, boost tourist arrivals and add 35,000 jobs.

With a well-educated population that speaks English, Chinese and Malay, Singapore is increasingly focusing on finance and tourism, said Irvin Seah, an economist with DBS Bank in Singapore.

"Services are really a green pasture going forward for Singapore," Seah said. "It's the area which we really want to fully exploit and it's where we have a comparative advantage in the region."

Manufacturing, which has long dominated the economy, has been slowly leaving the country as companies seek cheaper labor costs in regional neighbors such as China and Vietnam.

"Competitors are catching up very quickly," Seah said. "In some segments of the manufacturing sector, we are certainly fighting a losing battle."


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Tourist attractions in Singapore gearing up for 2010

SINGAPORE : Tourist attractions in Singapore are pulling out all the stops to draw in visitors this festive season.

And they are not stopping there. Many of them said visitors can expect more promotions and events in 2010. For example, visitors can feed flamingos at the Jurong Bird Park, as part of the attraction's Latin Fiesta-themed year-end celebrations.

Its sister attractions, the Night Safari and the Singapore Zoo, are also planning similar activities, including appearances by Wild Tarzan Santa and an elephant showcase.

Meanwhile, Sentosa is hosting a range of family-friendly activities, including sand sculpting, playing of percussions and puppet storytelling. And they are not the only ones hoping to cash in on the tourist dollar this festive period.

Wendy Leong, general manager, City Tours, said: "We have the Christmas light-up tour. In the past, we did it just for 40 minutes, so that is why with the three-hour tour this year, we have an increase in the number of tourists coming into Singapore to join up with us."

Others are hoping the opening of the two integrated resorts will help boost business by helping to attract tourists here.

Patsy Ong, managing director, Adval Brand Group, said: "We are pretty much affected by the global economic crisis - we have seen a 25 per cent drop in visitorship, largely from the corporates and from overseas visitors... We are optimistic about it, but we are (also) cautious."

Between April and November 2009, Sentosa saw an increase in visitorship as compared to the same period last year. And it expects visitorship to the island to more than double to 15 million to 20 million over the next few years when Resorts World opens.

While some operators remain unsure about what the year ahead will bring, most are already gearing up for 2010, with new packages, promotions and new attractions ready to draw in the tourists.

Noel Hawkes, vice president, Resort Operations, Resorts World Sentosa, said: "We are going to open with a bang. It is going to be 20 attractions within Universal Studios, which includes the fabulous duelling roller coaster, the Madagascar, Revenge of the Mummy... Jurassic Park and many, many more.

"Of course, (there are also) the retail options and F&B. Four hotels... we have got Hotel Michael, Crockfords Tower, Festive Hotel and Hard Rock. Plus we have got the casino and that is going to occupy 150,000 square feet and it is really beautiful; it has got a lot of restaurants in there. We have got a mass gaming floor, plus the VIP gaming area on the second level."

The Singapore Tourism Board said it is hopeful that tourists arrivals in 2010 will surpass the 9 million to 9.5 million visitors expected this year. - CNA/ms


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Visa on arrival for tourists from five nations

NEW DELHI: In a major boost for Commonwealth Games 2010, the government has introduced for the first time `visa on arrival' scheme for tourists from five countries from early next year.

Tourists from Singapore, Finland, New Zealand, Luxembourg and Japan will be given visa on arrival facility on a pilot basis for a period of one year, Sujit Banerjee, tourism secretary, said. The scheme will be applicable in airports as well as ports across the country.

The decision was taken after tourism ministry had sought introduction of the scheme for tourists coming from these countries which are potential source markets for India. Keeping in view present-day threat perception, the ministry has suggested that citizens from nine countries including Germany, Argentina, Brazil, Finland, Netherlands, Laos, Japan, Cambodia and South Africa be allowed to avail this facility.

"We will pursue extending the VoA facility to the remaining four countries as well,'' Banerjee said.

Visa on arrival facility is offered by several southeast Asian countries and proves popular with foreign tourists looking for a short break. Germany and Japan are among the top 10 source countries for India while Brazil and Netherlands have shown encouraging growth over the last year.

The modalities of implementation of the scheme are being worked out with all the stakeholders and will be notified very shortly, Banerjee said. The visa on arrival scheme is expected to provide a quantum jump in foreign tourist arrivals to India from these countries.

"We hope that visa on arrival facility will give a fillip to foreign tourist arrivals. We have kept security concerns on mind before restricting the facility to these five countries,'' a ministry source said.

Incidentally, India has already introduced long-term multiple entry visa for 18 countries including France, Germany, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Belgium, Finland, Spain, Switzerland
, Norway, Iceland, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico and Vietnam in 2006.

Due to security reasons, countries like the US, UK and Pakistan are out of the list of nine countries that will be accorded the facility, officials said. But this could change once airlines
offer advance passenger information.


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Singapore Tourism Board launches City Advantage tag for business travellers

Singapore Tourism Board (STB), as the latest addition to its ‘2009 Reasons to meet in Singapore’ campaign, has launched the City Advantage tag for business travellers. The campaign promotes Singapore as a preferred MICE destination with a host of offerings ranging from dining to retail, and attractions to healthcare and wellness. More than 20 hotels have come together to offer privileges such as free unlimited Internet services, complimentary breakfast, accommodation extension and a host of other meetings packages. The City Advantage, which is exclusive to business travellers and delegates attending MICE events that are taking place in Singapore until December 2009, is distributed through hotels and to delegates upon registration at MICE events. Designed for both form and functionality, the City Advantage tag is compact and lightweight to suit the needs of business travellers.

“Through the City Advantage programme, we aim to showcase Singapore as a vibrant and cosmopolitan destination that offers memorable experiences for business visitors. Singapore delivers on this value proposition with the ‘2009 Reasons to meet in Singapor’ campaign, with business visitors gaining the added advantage of being able to experience the diverse leisure offerings in Singapore,” said Melissa Ow, Assistant Chief Executive, Business Travel and MICE Group, STB.

STB is also encouraging business delegates to tap on the benefits of the ‘Bring along a partner’ promotion, which features special deals for their partners such as dining and spa treatments. Information on the participating merchants under ‘2009 Reasons to meet in Singapore’ can be found on the City Advantage tag, along with contact numbers which business travellers can call to readily access taxi services, Goods and Services Tax (GST) refund and tourist information.

Elaborating on the City Advantage tag, Chew Tiong Heng, Director, Destination Marketing, STB said, “The objective of the City Advantage tag is to enhance and enrich the experiences of business visitors while they are in Singapore. The City Advantage tag and programmes under the ‘2009 Reasons to meet in Singapore’ campaign are all initiatives under BOOST (Building On Opportunities to Strengthen Tourism) to provide leisure and business visitors with value-enhancing packages and experiences. We would like to express our appreciation for the valuable efforts of our industry partners, in collaborating with the STB to develop these attractive promotions. We encourage all business travellers to take advantage of these exclusive promotions that stretch the dollar, and to enjoy Singapore’s stimulating destination offerings.”

STB launched BOOST, a SD 90 million initiative to help the tourism sector through the economic downturn. In the short term, BOOST aims to capture greater mindshare and maintain market share with ‘2009 Reasons to enjoy Singapore and ‘2009 Reasons to meet in Singapore’. Beyond these campaigns, BOOST also focuses on strengthening the sector by building capabilities, boosting collaboration with industry partners, and shaping the future of Singapore’s tourism sector.

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