Outbound travel to trump inbound travel in the short term with reopening

Singapore

TRAVEL and tourism players expect a boost once the new framework for fully vaccinated travellers to Singapore kicks in from Apr 1 - though outbound travel may pick up faster than inbound travel.

Still, Singapore Hotel Association president Kwee Wei-Lin hopes that traveller numbers will rise to more than 50 per cent of the pre-Covid level by the end of this year.

The Vaccinated Travel Framework (VTF) will let fully vaccinated travellers and non-vaccinated children enter Singapore quarantine-free and without the need to use Vaccinated Travel Lanes (VTLs). They must still be tested pre-departure, but not after arrival.

The removal of both on-arrival testing and the need for Vaccinated Travel Passes are "impactful milestones" that will improve the travelling experience and restore confidence in travel, said Lavinia Rajaram, Asia head of public relations for Expedia Group.

"It may be too soon to tell at this point which source markets we will see significant growth in travel demand from... but we will be able to see some clear trends in the next 24 to 48 hours," she added.

On Expedia, the United States, United Kingdom and Australia are the top 3 inbound travel markets for the first 2 quarters of 2022.

Some travel agencies are already seeing greater interest. Millennium Tours & Travel received a 20 per cent spike in queries from travel agents in India after Thursday's announcement, said director Balaji Narayanan: "This is welcome news for us. We're looking forward to push hard and maximise arrivals with India and Vietnam as key markets for us."

He expects a 60 to 70 per cent increase in inbound travel demand with the VTF in place, and aims to bring in 5,000 tourists from India and 1,000 from Vietnam this year.

The uptick in outbound travel interest has been more immediate than for inbound, said Steven Ler, president of the National Association of Travel Agents Singapore and executive director of travel agency UOB Travel Planners.

Within a few hours of the announcement, UOB Travel Planners saw a 20 to 30 per cent increase in queries from Singaporeans wanting to travel overseas, Ler added.

Outbound flight searches on Expedia had already doubled in the 7 days before Thursday's news, with Stockholm, Zurich and Perth as the most-searched destinations.

Zakir Hussain, director of Serangoon Air Travels, said that inbound travel may not be boosted that significantly yet, with the main impact only in 3 to 6 months' time.

"Travel really only picks up during the June and December school holidays, so we won't see much reaction from travellers now. Many people are still afraid to travel, not just because of Covid-19, but because costs of everything are going up - because of inflation and the Ukraine war," he noted.

Ticket costs, however, may decrease, as they will no longer be differentiated the way they were with VTLs, he added.

SHA's Kwee said the greater ease of travel, reduced testing and removal of quotas will help to increase Singapore's visitor traffic "exponentially", adding: "SHA and our member hotels have been relentless in our efforts to prepare for tourism recovery since 2020.

"From hygiene and health protocols to the digital transformation of the hotel experience, we are now proficient in living with Covid-19."

Separately, the easing of domestic restrictions from Mar 29 will also inject some much-needed "buzz" to the MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) sector, said operators.

These include loosened rules for live performances, allowing alcohol beyond 10.30 pm, and larger social group sizes of 10, up from 5.

The capacity limit for events and settings with more than 1,000 people will also rise to 75 per cent, up from 50 per cent currently.

This is particularly critical for larger trade shows and events, "which can now look forward to running in a more normalised business environment", said Dylan Sharma, vice-president for advocacy and communication at the Singapore Association of Convention and Exhibition Organisers and Suppliers (SACEOS).

He added: "The increase of capacity for dining at events has also provided a much-needed boost for the industry, where F&B has always played an integral role in facilitating networking opportunities and the overall event experience."

Adam Piperdy, founder of events company Unearthed Productions, said the majority of calls he received after the news were from clients with existing bookings, with requests to tweak event layouts for bigger groups of 8 or 10 at tables, as well as to bring in a live band.

But he expects fresh requests to follow: "There are a lot more options now. For new clients, they will need to start securing budgets and management approval before approaching us for a proposal."

He expects a 15 to 30 per cent rise in enquiries for corporate and consumer-based events in the next month, in the lead-up to the peak season from September onwards.

The easing of restrictions could not have arrived "at a better time" for the MICE industry, said SACEOS' Sharma. But he added that it was important for MICE players to test-bed and operationalise new measures at upcoming events, before considering the next step forward.

"The safety and well-being of all stakeholders, including attendees and organisers, must continue to remain at the forefront of our planning parameters," Sharma said.

READ MORE: Mask rules, group size cap, border curbs eased as Singapore reaches 'turning point'