WITH more Chinese tourists staying away from Japan and Thailand of late due to various health and safety concerns, Singapore has overtaken those two countries as their preferred travel destination for now.

The latest quarterly travel sentiment survey of 10,000 Chinese residents conducted by digital marketing firm China Trading Desk (CTD) found that a sixth (17.5 per cent) picked Singapore as a place they will visit.

Europe came in second on their list, with 14.3 per cent indicating a desire to go there. South Korea was third with 11.4 per cent.