India among top three countries on Singapore's tourist list in 2024

India has emerged as one of the top three markets for visitor arrivals in Singapore with 1.2 million Indians visiting the city-state in 2024, the tourism board here said on Tuesday.

China topped the tourist list with 3.08 million arrivals to Singapore followed by Indonesia with 2.49 million arrivals. 

 

International visitor arrivals continued a steady recovery from 2023, increasing by 21 per cent to 16.5 million in 2024, the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) said in its year-in-review report. Singapore's pre-pandemic peak in 2019 saw 19.1 million arrivals.

 

China (3.08 million arrivals), Indonesia (2.49 million) and India (1.2 million) emerged as the top three source markets for visitors, with a mix of short-, mid- and long-haul markets such as Japan, Taiwan, the United Kingdom and the United States showing 'healthy year-on-year growth', said the STB.

Tourism receipts or spending for the full year are likely to reach the upper bound of the statutory board's forecast of SGD 27.5 billion to SGD 29 billion, having already hit SGD 22.4 billion between January and September 2024. This is up 10 per cent from the same period in 2023, said STB.

In 2024, Singapore's tourism sector posted a strong performance, an affirmation of the industry's efforts in refreshing our products and experiences, as well as embarking on new collaborations this past year, STB Chief Executive Melissa Ow said.

Collectively, these efforts elevated Singapore's destination appeal and strengthened the sector's capabilities and competitiveness, she added.

World-class concerts by Coldplay, Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift generated substantial economic benefits and enhanced Singapore's global brand, with spillover effects to adjacent tourism industries such as retail, dining and hotels, highlighted STB in a media release.