International arrivals exceed forecast to hit 6.3 million, tourism receipts reach an estimated $14 billion amid growing demand
Singapore – Singapore’s international visitor arrivals (IVA) reached 6.3 million in 2022 (33 percent of 2019 IVA), exceeding STB’s forecast of between 4 and 6 million visitors. Tourism receipts (TR) are estimated to reach $13.8 to $14.3 billion (50 percent to 52 percent of 2019 TR). Barring unexpected circumstances, tourism activity is now expected to recover to pre-pandemic levels by 2024.
Mr Keith Tan, Chief Executive of, the Singapore Tourism Board (STB), said: “Our 2022 tourism performance underscores Singapore’s appeal as a leading business and leisure destination for post-pandemic travelers. 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.”
2022 Tourism Performance
Visitor arrivals were driven by strong demand from Singapore’s key source markets, led by Indonesia (1.1 million), India (686,000), and Malaysia (591,000).
TR reached $8.96 billion between January to September 2022. The top TR-generating markets were Indonesia, India, and Australia, which contributed $1.1 billion, $704 million, and $633 million respectively in TR (excluding Sightseeing, Entertainment, and Gaming).
Visitors are also spending more time in Singapore compared to before the pandemic. For the last three quarters of the year (April-December 2022) when Singapore no longer required quarantine for fully-vaccinated travelers, the average length of stay was approximately 4.81 days. This is a significant increase compared to 3.36 days for the same period in 2019.
Key Industry Performance
MICE and Leisure Events
The resumption of MICE events picked up pace in 2022, following the easing of border restrictions and safety management measures.
Marquee international events returned to Singapore, including Food and Hotel Asia – Food & Beverage and Food and Hotel Asia – HoReCa, which took place as two dedicated trade shows for the first time, ITB Asia, and Singapore Fintech Festival, which attracted a record turnout from over 115 countries. STB also secured new events like FIND: Design Fair Asia as well as Global Health Security Conference 2022 and the 14th World Stroke Congress, which reinforced Singapore’s leadership in key industry clusters.
Singapore’s calendar of leisure and sporting events also recovered strongly. The Formula 1 Singapore Airlines Singapore Grand Prix 2022 – held after a two-year hiatus – drew a record attendance of 302,000; the Tour de France Prudential Singapore Criterium also made its Southeast Asian debut. Regular crowd-pleasers such as the Singapore Food Festival, Christmas Wonderland, Christmas on A Great Street at Orchard Road, the Marina Bay Singapore Countdown, and ZoukOut Singapore were all organized successfully and drew visitors from around the world.
Hotels Industry Performance
Singapore’s hotel industry also posted an encouraging year due to stronger demand for leisure and business travel. From April to December 2022, the Average Occupancy Rate (AOR) was 79.1 percent, compared to 87.3 percent recorded in the same period in 2019. Average room rates during this period increased by 17 percent to $260, while Revenue per Available Room (RevPAR) increased by 6.2 percent to $206.
Singapore welcomed a total of 465 new keys in 2022 with the opening of new hotels like the Citadines Connect City and Garden Pod @ Gardens By The Bay Centre. New brands like Hotel Telegraph (formerly known as SO Singapore), Pullman Singapore Orchard (formerly known as Grand Park Orchard), voco Orchard Singapore (formerly known as Hilton Singapore at 581 Orchard Road), and Vibe Hotel Singapore Orchard (formerly known as Elizabeth Hotel) were also introduced. These investments underscored the private sector’s confidence in Singapore’s tourism prospects.
Cruise Industry Performance
Singapore’s position as a regional cruise hub strengthened in 2022 with more than 230 ship calls. Passenger throughput was 1.2 million, which is about two-thirds of pre-pandemic levels in 2019. The return of cruising was supported by the year-round deployment of Resorts World Cruises’ Genting Dream and Royal Caribbean International’s Quantum/Spectrum of the Seas. Following the resumption of sailings with ports of call in July, two new cruise lines made Singapore their seasonal homeport:
STB’s new three-year partnership with Silversea Cruises will see its ships homeport seasonally in Singapore till the 2024/2025 season, with Silver Muse kicking off the first sailing from Singapore in December 2022.
TUI Cruises Mein Schiff 5 also returned to Southeast Asia in December 2022, starting their three-year seasonal homeport from Singapore and taking passengers to ports in Southeast Asia.
Singapore also welcomed the return of transit and turnaround sailings from Cunard, Seabourn Cruises, Viking Cruises, Oceania Cruises, and Regent Seven Seas Cruises in 2022.
2022 Highlights
Branded Collaborations and Strategic Partnerships
To keep Singapore top-of-mind and rebuild demand, STB scaled up its SingapoReimagine campaign across 17 markets. It also increased Singapore’s appeal to consumers through innovative partnerships.
For example, STB collaborated with media and entertainment companies such as Warner Bros. Discovery and Studio Dragon, as well as celebrities Billie Eilish, Charlie Puth, and Jackson Wang to inspire travel to Singapore through authentic and creative storytelling. STB also forged strategic partnerships with industry leaders such as Singapore Airlines, Scoot, CapitaLand, Expedia, Klook, and Visa to promote Singapore, exchange insights, and enhance the visitor experience.
Enhanced Destination Attractiveness
Singapore welcomed new and enhanced experiences, including the Children’s Museum Singapore; Avatar: The Experience at Gardens by the Bay; Sentosa’s Night Luge, Scentopia, Wings of Time, and Central Beach Bazaar; a new gallery at ArtScience Museum’s Future World: “Exploring New Frontiers”; A Minion’s Perspective Experience at Resorts World Sentosa; Mr. Bucket Chocolaterie at Dempsey; and the Singapore Night Safari’s new amphitheater and refreshed Creatures of the Night show. The Changi Bay Park Connector and the Rifle Range Nature Park were also opened, strengthening Singapore’s attractiveness as a City in Nature.
Singapore’s tour operators continued to introduce new and innovative tours, including the Seadog Kayak Sailing Tour by Kayak Fishing Fever, Letters From Blakang Mati by Woopa Travel as well as Hawker Fare: Little India Street Food Tour.
Becoming an Urban Wellness Haven and a Top Sustainable Destination
To meet the increasing demand for holistic wellness offerings, STB organized the inaugural Wellness Festival Singapore (WFS) in June 2022, which featured over 130 wellness activities and experiences over 10 days. STB also inked a partnership with global wellness platform ClassPass, onboarding more than 90 new wellness businesses across 167 locations.
To make wellness a key component of Singapore’s tourism offerings, STB launched an Expression-of-Interest (EOI) in November to develop a wellness attraction on the southern coast of Singapore.
STB also made strides to help the tourism sector become more sustainable. A destination sustainability strategy for the tourism sector was developed in 2022 in line with the Singapore Green Plan 2030 and our ambition to become a sustainable urban destination. Industry-specific roadmaps were developed for hotels[8] and the MICE ecosystem, while the Tourism Sustainability Programme was launched to support tourism businesses in all stages of their sustainability journey.
