Singapore’s hotels and serviced apartments enhance Covid-19 protocols to replace international tourists with local customers
- Millennium Hotels and Resorts offered discounts to guests with vaccination records in celebration of Singapore’s National Day at its hotels
- Genting’s Dream Cruises relaunched its “cruise to nowhere” package in November with enhanced hygiene protocols, social distancing and fresh air ventilation
There is no doubt that 2020 was a tough year for tourism all around the world, Singapore included. Visitor arrivals to the city fell to their lowest level in about four decades, to 2.7 million, with all those arrivals taking place during the first two months of the year.
According to the Singapore Tourism Board (STB), the overall annual arrival numbers were down 85.7 per cent from those over the whole of 2019.
As reported in The Straits Times, the STB said this was largely due to unprecedented global travel restrictions and border closures.
STB chief executive Keith Tan remains steadfast and optimistic, saying in a press release that, “STB remains confident in Singapore’s position as one of the world’s safest and most attractive leisure and business destinations, and the long-term prospects of Singapore’s tourism sector.”
With vaccination efforts well under way, and over 60 per cent of the population inoculated as of August, moves to encourage more people to get the Covid-19 vaccine have expanded into the retail, and food and beverage sectors, with a growing array of offers and discounts extended to those who get the potentially life-saving shots.
To ease concerns about Covid-19 side effects, insurer Great Eastern has implemented the Great Covid Care Plan, which extends a complimentary post-vaccination protection plan to all Singapore residents who have completed their first dose of a Covid-19 vaccine approved for use by the Health Sciences Authority or supplied under the Special Access Route.
