Singapore eyes more Lankan travellers

By Shabiya Ali Ahlam in Singapore

Singapore yesterday expressed confidence that Sri Lanka is emerging as a major prospective market for tourists and that the country will figure a top position as an air city for the city-state.

With Mumbai, followed by Chennai and Delhi, being the biggest air hubs for Singapore, the Singapore Tourist Board (STB) expressed assurance that Sri Lanka will be among the top five air cities when Colombo and Dhaka is plugged in.

During a media briefing that was held yesterday for a group of visiting Sri Lankan journalists, STB Asia Director – South Asia G. B. Srithar pointed out that the number of travellers from Sri Lanka to other destinations was increasing.

Acknowledging the upward trend and stating that recent statistics show a near 50% increase in Sri Lankan travellers in comparison to 0.5 million travellers about five years ago, Srithar stressed that Singapore would continue to be a ‘very keen player’ for Sri Lankan travellers.

Evaluating the demand for leisure travel prevailing in the market, he stated: “We note that Singapore continues to be a place of interest for Sri Lankan travellers,” he said while justifying his statement with the fact that Singapore offers a unique concentration of experiences.

Highlighting three key factors that, according to the STB, lure travellers from Sri Lanka to Singapore, Srithar stated that the first was the offer of a multiple holiday in just one visit. “We have a whole range in terms of culture, history, art and food experiences,” he noted.

The second factor is ease and convenience of getting about the country, which is made easy due to the country’s infrastructure and the development in its transport system. Srithar said that the third and most attractive element is the ‘continuous renewal’ of the Singaporean tourism sector.

“We ensure that we renew our tourist destinations so that those who visit Singapore multiple times would have the pleasure of witnessing a different experience to what he would have had previously,” he asserted. “We are a lifestyle and leisure capital, and we are certainly making an effort to make our visitors’ experience here a unique one whenever they visit.

He went on the say that access to Singapore is made easy since five recognised carriers offer the Colombo to Singapore route and vice versa. These are Singapore International Airlines, SriLankan Airlines, Emirates, Tiger Airways and Cathay Pacific. Based on STB’s statistics, Colombo to Singapore has 36 flights one way, per week, and the capacity for the route per week is 8,745 seats.

With Singapore Airlines being one of the main carriers on the Colombo to Singapore and return route, Singapore Airlines General Manager – Sri Lanka Aldrin E. Arumugam stated that the airline also acknowledged Sri Lanka as an important market to Singapore.

“Singapore Airlines, having been in operation in the nation for over 42 years, has seen the travel and aviation industry grow from strength to strength. I am certain that Sri Lankan travellers would be keen to visit attractions in Singapore and enjoy the unflappable service of our airline, making Singapore their next destination of choice,” Arumugam expressed.