SINGAPORE: Singapore Tourism Board Introduces App To Improve Tourism Business

Small businesses hoping to get a share of the tourist dollar now have an easier way to grow their reach through a new online platform that allows them to share their content with a broader audience, or use resources from it to improve their own services.

The Tourism Information and Service Hub, launched yesterday by the Singapore Tourism Board (STB), will provide a one-stop tourism resource for businesses.

Attractions can, for example, upload their operating hours and events to gain exposure, while travel businesses here and abroad may download such information and have updates automatically reflected on their linked websites and apps.

STB chief executive Lionel Yeo, who launched the hub at STB's annual tourism industry conference, said the platform addresses an industry need to have more up-to-date information about tourism offerings and to have a one-stop source to find out what is happening in Singapore.

The platform also provides access to content or software that can be used on a website or app of a business. It is free for businesses to use.

Mr Alvin Yapp, owner of The Intan, a private Peranakan museum, is one of more than 600 companies that have registered.

We don't have a huge marketing budget to reach out to tour agents or potential customers, Visitors may have difficulty finding these niche experiences, and the hub now allows smaller players like myself to connect, said Mr Yapp.

Mr Yeo said data analytics will also play a bigger role in tourism.

The Singapore Tourism Analytics Network, launched last year for internal use by the STB, will now be made available to external stakeholders in phases, said Mr Yeo.

The network uses aggregated visitor geo-location data, among other information, to gather insights on tourists here.

The STB has already entered into data partnerships with industry members, including Sentosa Development Corporation and Expedia.

Under a partnership cemented this week, Expedia will provide booking and search data to the STB to share with tourism stakeholders here, a first for the booking platform.

Other plans announced at the conference included a new night experience at the Singapore Zoo and Marvel-themed events.

A Marvel Studios, Ten Years Of Heroes exhibition will run for three months from June at the ArtScience Museum as part of STB's three-year partnership with The Walt Disney Company South-east Asia to bring themed events and activities here.

Minister for Trade and Industry S. Iswaran, speaking at the event yesterday, noted that increased air connectivity and a rapidly growing middle class in the region are among the factors projected to raise international visitor arrivals to the Asia-Pacific from 279 million in 2015 to 535 million in 2030.

The industry can better leverage technology to sharpen marketing and outreach efforts, complement and refresh tourism offerings and drive better productivity, he added.

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Tourism Observer

SINGAPORE: Mandai Eco-tourism Hub

When completed, Mandai’s eco-tourism hub is expected to attract more than 10 million visitors each year, as well as generate a significant number of jobs in conservation research, tourism and hospitality, said developer Mandai Park Holdings as it launched the construction phase of the project on Monday (Jan 16).

The Mandai rejuvenation project will see the relocation of Jurong Bird Park and the development of a new Rainforest Park in the same area as the Singapore Zoo, Night Safari and River Safari.

Currently, the four parks attract about 4.6 million visitors each year.

Speaking at the ceremony, Minister for Trade and Industry (Industry) S Iswaran promised “a rejuvenated experience in Mandai” once the first phase of the project - the opening of the Bird Park - is completed by 2020.

Mr Iswaran said the project would enhance Singapore's identity as a "city in a garden" and provide career opportunities for Singaporeans interested in conservation research and hospitality.

"With a strong focus on conservation and sustainability, Mandai will be a hub for nature education and research as well as a leading nature destination in Asia."

Elaborating on the type of jobs available, Mandai Park Holdings’ chief executive officer, Mike Barclay, said the aim was to run the five parks as an integrated precinct that would allow staff to rotate and work in the different parks and in various functions.

“We currently employ about 1,000 people full-time and we have many part-timers working with us. Our scale of operations will grow. We’ll have two new zoological parks here to staff up here in Mandai. We’ll have a hotel product - an eco-lodge product - and also an indoor centre, so there will be a lot of job opportunities.”

Visitors to the new Bird Park will see some of the world’s most endangered bird species in their natural habitats, said the developer. For example, it will feature the flora and fauna found in the flooded savannahs of South and Central America. Bird species from Africa, Papua New Guinea and the Australian bushland will also be represented.

Its avian collection is also billed as being among the most significant to be assembled in the world, featuring birds of paradise and hornbills, many of them endangered species.

One of the key attractions at the new Bird Park will be an underwater and "overwater" habitat for sub-Antarctic penguins. The developer said it would provide visitors a "fly with the penguins" experience - one that creates the impression of penguins "flying" through the water.

Another highlight, the Rainforest Park, will take visitors through the biodiversity found in Southeast Asian foliage, and allow them to see the trees from recreated caverns, a boardwalk and an aerial walkway.

“You could be at the tree-top level with the orangutans climbing the trees around you. I think it’s a very exciting concept and that’s why we want the different layering of the parks,” said Mr Barclay.

The Rainforest Park is expected to be ready by the end of 2021, earlier than the 2023 completion date previously announced.

Visitors to the new Bird Park and the Rainforest Park will arrive from the precinct's west entrance - one of the two "arrival nodes" to the precinct.

The other entrance - from the east - will provide access to nature-themed indoor attractions, as well as the zoo, the Night Safari and River Safari. It will also house accommodation options.

The entrances will be connected by walking trails and boardwalks along Upper Seletar Reservoir.

The separate entry points were created to reduce the impact of visitors passing through a single entrance next to the Central Catchment Nature Reserve.

Mr Barclay said a key guideline for the massive development is sustainability and the idea is to look at using the right materials and harvesting new energy sources.

“If you have a waterfall, it creates a lot of energy. Can we harvest that energy and put it back in to offset the energy being used to power the pumps? We have lots of opportunities for solar power as well within the parks,” he said.

Mr Barclay said Mandai Park Holdings will continue to work with nature groups to get their feedback on mitigating the impact of the project on the surrounding environment.