Advertisement

So many Singaporeans are now travelling, they’re bumping into friends in Malaysia, Thailand, Australia, Indonesia

  • The number visiting Australia last month was at pre-pandemic levels; many booking extra overseas trips, while others travel less but spend more
  • Demand to head abroad is so high that national carrier Singapore Airlines and its budget subsidiary Scoot are adding more flight routes

Reading Time:4 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
8
Travellers wait to embark at Singapore’s Changi Airport. Demand is soaring among Singaporeans for holidays abroad. File photo: Reuters
When Diane Foong, 34, finally got to go on her Covid-delayed honeymoon to Bali last month, the flight was full and Singapore’s Changi Airport was teeming with travellers. So many people were on the move that Foong ran into two friends who happened to be on the same flight as her.
Advertisement

It was a pleasant surprise and not the only serendipitous encounter she had during her seven-day trip.

“My Australian colleague was also in Bali. Then on the flight back, I bumped into a customer,” said Foong, who works in the healthcare industry.

Now that borders have reopened – with most places dropping the need for onerous and expensive testing for Covid-19 and quarantine as long as travellers are vaccinated – those in Singapore are taking to the skies with a vengeance.

A Bali beach. File photo: Shutterstock
A Bali beach. File photo: Shutterstock
Booking.com data showed that the number of Singaporeans who travelled to Australia during the June school holidays was at pre-pandemic levels. Comparing this June to June last year, TripAdvisor saw a 13-fold increase in Singaporeans booking international travel.
Advertisement
Advertisement