Singapore sees 46.8% higher inbound travel for CNY holiday

Singaporean travelers, meanwhile, are flocking to theme parks in Hong Kong and Japan.

Singapore is expected to see a 46.8% increase in inbound travel this Chinese New Year festive period compared to the same period in 2023, according to a study by Trip.com.

Travel expenditure from tourists has also more than doubled, with a 108.6% increase compared to 2023.

Part of the reason for increased spending could be due to tourists making longer-haul trips, with more Southeast Asian tourists travelling beyond the region for the 2024 CNY period, Trip.com noted.

“Last year, 72% of CNY travel was intra-SEA, but this has gone down to just over half (50.2%), with the other half visiting destinations further afield,” Trip.com said in a press release.

SEA countries which have declared CNY a public holiday– Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Brunei– are seeing more travel during the holiday week than countries who do not have it as a public holiday.

During the holiday week, countries with CNY public holidays made up 69.1% of all SEA bookings, Trip.com shared.

Longer planning time
One trend Trip.com observed for this year’s travellers is that they are now planning their trips further in advance. Booking window for trips originating from Singapore increased by more than two and a half times, at 46 days.

Previously, travellers made bookings just 18 days on average in advance.

The trend is more pronounced in other markets across SEA: Malaysian and Thai travellers booked 40-51 days in advance, from just 12 days last year. 

Theme parks rule
The second trend is that theme parks remain the destination of choice for tourists from Southeast Asia.

Singaporeans are expected to flock to Hong Kong Disneyland during the week, as it is their top travel destination, Trip.com showed. Malaysians and Thai travellers are sure to join them.

Expect to see Singaporeans at Tokyo DisneySea, Warner Bros Studio Tour Tokyo - The Making of Harry Potter, Universal Studios Japan, and Ghibli Museum as well.

Visitors to Singapore, on the other hand, are likely to head to Universal Studios Singapore, Captain Explorer DUKW™ Tour, the Night Safari, Singapore DUCKtours, Skyline Luge, S.E.A. Aquarium, Singapore Flyer, and the Singapore Zoo.