Singaporeans hit by travel bug despite slowing economy

THE National Association of Travel Agents Singapore (NATAS) Travel Fair earlier this month drew 65,000 serious visitors despite the downturn in economy.

NATAS CEO, Robert Khoo, said, “The fair generated about S$60 million (US$43 million) in sales, which is above the S$35 million generated at the last show, or a 70 percent increase.” Khoo was pleased with the turnout that exceeded his expectations by a wide margin. In fact, the size of the show was expanded by a quarter to 20,000 square metres to accommodate 1026 booths of 157 exhibitors.

“The bookings at NATAS Holidays, held from August 1 to 3, is reflective that travel sentiments are not affected by the current economic situation and escalating fuel surcharges and taxes. Singaporeans are still geared up to travel for yearend. There was a slow down in the first half of 2008 and we feel that there is a pent-up desire to travel for year-end,” said Alicia Seah, SVP, Marketing and PR CTC Holidays.

Top destinations include Japan, Taiwan, China and Korea while there was also increased demand for Australia, Europe and USA. The pent-up demand fueled the buying spree.

“We were a bit skeptical at first on the turnout, although we had a record sales of booth space at 1026 booths. But after the first day, we were quite sure that it was going be a resounding success. All the agents that I spoke to have said that they’ve broken the last fair’s records and this was also quite unexpected. I guess there was such a pent-up demand as the sales for the last two months was not that good,” said Susan Teng, NATAS outbound chairman.

Agencies like Chan Brothers raked up record sales of S$13 million over three days at the fair. CTC Holidays, meanwhile, saw an increase of about 35 percent in sales revenue compared to the same time last year.

Singaporeans were keen to snap up the ‘good’ bargains and were even paying in full payments upfront. This could have been influenced by the active promotions of MasterCard, which is NATAS’ preferred credit card partner for the fair.

“The turnout at the fair was good right from the very first day. Travel has become an essential part of Singaporeans’ lifestyles and particularly so because the island is only so big and there is only so much you can do here. Singaporeans, in general, toil many hours at work. As such, travelling to them is not just about resting and relaxation but also a channel for gratification, inspiration, stress-relief, family-bonding and eye-opening experiences,” said Jane Chang, spokesperson for Chan Brothers.

The buying spree also stemmed from the stronger Singapore dollar that made trips to the United States and Japan more affordable.

“The Singaporean’s spending power is increased in these destinations. Japan, Korea are popular in terms of offering great winter holidays at ski resorts. Beijing – many are interested to visit the spruced up “new” Beijing after the Olympics, with the new and interesting architectures and buildings and the refurbished Forbidden City, etc,” said Seah.

Travel agencies also report that sales are continuing after the show and customers are still snapping up the good bargains.

Singaporeans are avid travellers. In 2006, they made more than 5.5 million trips out of the country. With recent economic developments, instead of taking many trips in a year, they may cut down to only two, one regional destination and the other to a long haul destination.