Bangkok is a close second.
In a time of a stagnating economy and a troubled local retail scene, MasterCard’s recent findings on where tourists spend their hard-earned cash brings some much-needed respite and positivity to these gloom moments.
The MasterCard Asia Pacific Destinations Index 2017, which measures international visitor numbers and amount spent in cities across the Asian Pacific region, showed that Singapore came out tops with visitors spending US$15.4 billion (S$21.5 billion) in 2016. MasterCard noted that this figure continued a trend of rising tourist spending figures, with an 18 percent jump over the past two years. The second and third placers, Bangkok and Tokyo, saw visitor spending numbers of US$12.7 billion and US$11.1 billion, respectively.
These three cities also claimed the top three spots when it came to being the region’s most-visited destination, albeit in a slightly altered order. Bangkok came in as the leader, drawing over 19 million visitors last year. Singapore and Tokyo then filled up the remaining two spots, with 13.1 million and 12.6 million visitors, respectively. Furthermore, of all the destinations in MasterCard’s findings, Singapore also managed to garner the highest-spending visitors, with these tourists spending an average of US$254 per day.
International Tourism Hub
These encouraging numbers might be, in part, due to the city-state’s keen interest in promoting Singapore as the go-to destination for stopovers in the region. With the development of Terminals 4 and 5 to allow for up to 50 million passenger movements a year, as well as the renewal of a three-year partnership between Changi Airport and the Singapore Tourism Board, the MasterCard’s report comes at a crucial time in the country’s aviation history as a sign of effective efforts.
Deborah Heng, MasterCard Singapore’s country manager, said that these numbers “[demonstrate] that the city-state has reaped the benefits of its many leisure offerings – from tourist attractions to new and different lifestyle and retail experiences” that have “solidified its position as a leading travel destination in the Asia Pacific region” She continued, saying that the findings “will encourage both the public and private sector to work together to develop new initiatives that will build on the work done to date.”
