When Lady Gaga performed for four nights in Singapore last month, the country enjoyed a Taylor Swift-style boom to the its hotel occupancies and rates, at least according to early search data.
Singapore was the only Asian stop on the Mayhem Ball Tour and marked the performer’s first appearance in the city-state for 13 years, with Gaga mania hitting the National Stadium on May 18, 19, 21 and 24.
The tour could have netted Singapore some S$100 – S$200 million in receipts, according to Dr. Natt Srinara, a marketing lecturer at EHL Hospitality Business School, which wouldn’t however quite reach the S$300 million generated by Swift’s six-night appearance last year, he says. “With the current trade dispute situation, you’re definitely going to see some softening in demand. But because Singapore is really the most viable venue in all of Southeast Asia, even possibly Asia, we should still see decent numbers.”
Calendar of events
Small but mighty Singapore has put its compact stature to good use in recent years, maximising the potential of its 735 square kilometres of land, home to nearly 6 million people. The main island is about 49km from east to west and 28km from north to south, making events, concerts and festivals accessible to all. The island has risen to the challenge with a year-round calendar of happenings for the locals, tourists and the business community, giving the destination a steady 365-day boost.
According to the Singapore Tourism Board (STB), family-friendly attractions at precincts such as Gardens by the Bay, Sentosa, and Mandai Wildlife Reserve, including the Bird Paradise, along with key leisure events like Formula 1 and Singapore Art Week helped boost visitor numbers last year, alongside quality MICE events. Concerts by Coldplay, Ed Sheeran and Swift generated substantial receipts and enhanced Singapore's global brand, alongside the Singapore and Southeast Asia debut of Disney Garden of Wonder at Gardens by the Bay, pop culture events such as Anime Festival Asia and Singapore Comic Con, and lifestyle and sports events including BLAST Premier World Final 2024, CAPCOM Pro Tour 2024 Super Premier Singapore and the reimagined Singapore Food Festival.
Improved occupancy
According to Cushman & Wakefield data, visitor arrivals to Singapore last year reached 90 percent of pre-pandemic levels, while tourism receipts per capita were about 20 percent higher than 2019 levels. Chinese travellers returned to being the top source market for the country, with scope for further geographical growth. In 2024, visitor numbers from China represented 87 percent of 2019 levels, Indonesia 81 percent, and India around 84 percent of 2019 levels, suggesting most markets are still below their pre-pandemic potential.
Cushman & Wakefield figures also show that Singapore average room rates (ARR) showed signs of stabilisation in 2024, slowing to 0.5 percent growth, compared to 11.6 percent year-on-year growth in 2023. Contributing to this are increased levels of hotel stock particularly in the upscale and midscale segments, despite cost pressures and labour shortages. RevPAR expanded by 3.5 percent in 2024, boosted by those healthy occupancy rates. The broker suggests that RevPAR should rise further in 2025, in line with visitor numbers returning to pre-pandemic volumes.
Star attractions
Luxury hotels have been strong performers in the city state, registering 10 percent uplifts in room rates in 2024, compared to the overall island wide average of 0.6 percent. Affluent travellers expecting luxury experiences and services show no signs of diminishing. Nonetheless, budget hotels performed well in 2024, with occupancy rates in 2024 climbing to more positive levels, just 4.8 percent below pre-pandemic figures. The supply of budget hotels is expected to exceed other categories in 2025, contributing to an overall room supply increase of around 3.8 percent. However, the professional services firm predicts that supply growth will taper to an average of 0.4 percent between 2026 and 2028, significantly below the pre-pandemic average pipeline growth of 4.6 percent between 2015 and 2019. This is expected to support both occupancy figures and RevPAR.
Another stellar showing of events is expected in 2025 to continue the Singapore buzz. While July marks the return of the popular Food Festival, October 3-5 sees the Singapore Grand Prix enliven the island, taking place on the Marina Bay Street Circuit. Historically, this event represented F1’s inaugural night race and the first street circuit in Asia designed for the world-famous competition. STB expects 2025 international visitor arrivals to reach between 17.0 to 18.5 million, bringing in approximately S$29.0 to S$30.5 billion in tourism receipts.
Investor appeal
For hospitality investors, Singapore’s appeal is boosted by its stable political environment, strong economic fundamentals and strategic location as a regional business hub. CBRE says that the island remains one of the top three preferred investment destinations in the region due to these criteria. Furthermore, the broker reports that Singapore hotels have returned to the radar of global investors in the light of efforts by the government and STB drives to create travel experiences and business events. Investors are particularly targeting luxury acquisitions, according to CBRE, due to demand dynamics and favourable returns, although value-add opportunities including renovations and conversions are seen as remunerative projects. CBRE reports that long-term operational leases and management contracts are popular due to the city-state’s stable occupancy rates and consistent revenue streams. Serviced apartments and lifestyle hotels are also being targeted, reflecting changing traveller preferences.
As in other Asian markets, Singapore’s hospitality industry has struggled with staffing its hotels since the pandemic. Yet STB data suggests that as of September 2024, the total tourism workforce recovered to around 76,000 – about 4 percent higher than in September 2023.
Upskilling tourism workers and strengthening the competitiveness of tourism companies will remain part of STB’s focus this year. In the light of this, the body recently inked a three-year partnership with NTUC LearningHub to co-develop and offer courses in areas of tourism such as sustainability, service experience excellence and technology. STB also introduced the Tourism Leadership Excellence & Advancement Programme (T-LEAP), a leadership training programme focused on partnership, technology and sustainability.
Progress has also been made, meanwhile, to stimulate sustainable tourism in support of the Singapore Green Plan 2030. In 2024, the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) MICE Criteria was developed in collaboration with the Singapore Association of Convention & Exhibition Organisers & Suppliers (SACEOS), creating a common sustainability standard for the MICE industry worldwide. STB reports that Singapore ranked top in Asia Pacific and seventh globally in the 2024 Global Destination Sustainability Index, rising ten places year-on-year.