Tourism chiefs from one of Southeast Asia’s most dynamic tourism hotspots have expressed confidence in traveller numbers from the Middle East.

“The major trends that we are identifying for 2005 include rising demand for ‘unique holiday experiences’, along with increasing interest in the concept of wellness holidays, an idea that extends from spas and relaxing beach holidays, right through to medical tourism,” said Alan Tan, area director, Middle East and Africa, Singapore Tourism Board.
In recent months, interest in Singapore has been further stimulated by a number of bilateral agreements with Middle East countries. Most recently, Singapore and Bahrain have signed an open skies agreement that removes all bilateral restrictions on passenger and cargo flights for their national airlines.
Additionally, visitor numbers are being driven by a series of major festivals scheduled to run over the summer. These include the famous Great Singapore Sale – the eight-week festival which runs till July 24, 2005.