2009 Reasons To Enjoy Singapore
Senior Minister of State and Trade for Industry of Singapore, S Iswaran, recently addressed Parliament on the opportunity to enhance tourism, to build and to strengthen. Due to the present state of the economy travel patterns must change. Tourists are seeking weekend get-a-ways, as opposed to month long holidays. Major cities are looking to offer weekend excursions to the people living within the limits, financial and geographical. Campaigns have recently started to target this potential intra-regional traffic and rely on the demand for residents of a particular region, to vacation within that region. Intra-tourism campaigns are promoting vacations that do not involve spending large amounts of money or travelling too far to off destinations.
Singapore is one such city. Tourism in Singapore is expected to drop as much as 11% during this global recession. That is about 10 million people less able to travel about. The financial implications from this kind of decrease in travel is immense for all cities, and for the city of Singapore it is an approximate 9 to 9 and 1/2 deficit.
This country in Southeast Asia and its’ Senior Minister are not sitting by idle. Singapore was ranked by the Union of International Associations (UIA) in 2006, 2007 and 2008 as the top international meeting city in the world. Perhaps much to the chagrin of cities such as Zurich, Geneva, Manhattan, Paris and Vienna. Now the question remains, in this heightened economically uncertain time, how does one improve? How does one move from a city known for a very great place to hold a meeting to a very great place place for fun and adventure. From take out restaurants bearing no resemblance to the culture to 5 star Singapore hotels? What kind of encore is needed to sustain and improve upon this current situation? Most are expecting all travel to slow down, business and pleasure.
Government programs assisted people during the American Depression resulting in production of plays and artworks and music for all to enjoy. Big bands and swing music were popular during the 1930s, singers like Frank Sinatra went out on their own. Singapore artists, such as Liu Kang and Lim Tze Pen, or movies such as “12 Storeys” or “Bugis Street”, or musicians such as Peter Lye have played and will continue to be part of a growing industry of tourism in Singapore. Good luck and well wishes to S Iswaran, a man with a vision.