Feature Articles
Recent Performance of Tourism in Singapore
21 November 2025
Tourism is a key pillar of Singapore’s economy, contributing to the value-added of a range of sectors such as the accommodation, arts, entertainment & recreation, food & beverage (F&B) services, retail trade and transportation & storage sectors. In 2024, tourism is estimated to have contributed 6.0 per cent of Singapore’s exports in services. Beyond its direct contribution to Singapore’s economy, tourism also plays a critical role in strengthening Singapore’s global connectivity and reputation as a premier destination for business and leisure, which in turn enhances our status as a key node in the flow of people and ideas.
This article examines the recent performance of and outlook for international visitor arrivals (IVA) and tourism receipts (TR) in Singapore.
Singapore’s IVA and TR plunged in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic before rebounding in 2022
The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic caused a sharp decline in tourism activity globally as stringent public health measures, including border closures, were implemented across the world to limit the spread of the virus. In Singapore, our TR (Exhibit 1) and IVA (Exhibit 2) likewise plummeted in 2020 and 2021. In particular, TR fell sharply to $4.8 billion in 2020 from the $27.7 billion posted in 2019, and contracted further to $1.9 billion in 2021. This came on the back of a slump in IVA from 19.1 million in 2019 to around 2.7 million and 330,000 in 2020 and 2021, respectively.