Singapore is fifth most visited city in the world

Visitors stayed for 4.3 nights and spent an average of $391 per day.

Singapore retained its position as the fifth most visited global destination, the Mastercard Global Destination Cities Index revealed. In 2017, the Lion City boosted a 6.1% growth and 13.91 million overnight international visitors.

The study found that most visitors came from China (18.8%), followed by Indonesia (15%), India (8.3%), Australia (6.1%) and Malaysia (5.2%).

“Tourism is an important contributor to urban economies and Singapore’s diverse offerings from its vibrant events all-year-round, unique tourist attractions and world-renowned cuisine have enabled the city to hold its place as one of the top five most popular destinations globally,” Mastercard Singapore country manager Deborah Heng said.

Heng noted that the strong partnerships between government and businesses attracted travelers to Asia, making the region record the highest overall tourist expenditures.

In terms of dollars spent by international visitors, Singapore ranked fourth as visitors’ total spending hit $23.24 (US$17.02b) in 2017 whilst average spend by day was recorded at $391 (US$286). Visitors usually stayed in the city-state for 4.3 nights on average.

Bangkok bested other cities as it clinched the top spot with more than 20 million international overnight visitors in 2017 who stayed for 4.7 nights and spent around $173 per day, on average.