Singapore - Following record visitor numbers into Singapore last year, the tourism sector is expected to continue booming in 2008.
Some attractions operators said they saw an increase of as much as 30 percent in receipts last year and are expecting the numbers to climb.
To cater to growing demand, some attractions are planning to expand.
Industry experts said Singapore is growing as a tourism hub, and attractions will benefit most by working together.
Singapore has enjoyed almost 4 years of uninterrupted tourism growth, crossing the 10 millionth mark for annual visitor arrivals in 2007.
Operators such as Reverse Bungee and Hippo Duck Tours told Channel NewsAsia they saw a 30 percent growth in receipts last year.
Kelvyn Poh, General Manager, G-MAX, said: "Our intake has been very steady since the first quarter and second quarter. I would say that it`s an upward trend, and towards the last quarter of the year it`s been really great.
"Since the beginning of the company in 2003, it has been amazing that we are seeing such expansion and growth in the company, so we brought in our new ride to compliment the G-MAX reverse bungee." To meet growing demand, G-MAX is planning to add a third ride.
The Singapore Flyer, due to launch next month, has already sold some 60 to 70 percent of tickets for the first three months of opening. It is reserving an additional 20 percent for walk-in visitors once it opens officially in March.
Patsy Ong, Managing Director, Adval, said: "Actually the soft launch is the first of March, the official launch is on the 15th April, and it being a soft launch we have actually released certain ticket types and that has been fully booked."
These smaller attractions are also seen riding on the bigger ones opening in the next few years, including the integrated resorts and theme parks such as Universal Studios.
Industry watchers said that adding a local flavour could help to make these attractions a must-see.
Alexander Kai, Associate Professor of Management Practice, NUS, said: "The increase in tourism to the big cities is actually larger than the world GDP growth so that`s very positive, but doesn`t mean that you will be automatically successful.
"So (for) the Universal Studios Singapore, they have to localise and that`s what they will do - they will create a lot of attractions specifically for Singapore."
Sentosa - home to one of the two integrated resorts - received over 460,000 more visitors in 2007 than in 2006.
Singapore will host its first ever F1 Grand Prix in September. This is expected to bring in an estimated 80,000 spectators a day over the period of the race and create receipts of around S$100 million a year.
Source: www.channelnewsasia.com (29 Januari 2008)
