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Singapore continues to pull in Thai travellers looking for a quick
holiday
For Thai travellers,
Singapore is considered a better value-for-money holiday destination
than Phuket or Krabi, and the launch of low-cost airlines, it seems, has
added more value to their money.
Singapore has three low-cost airlines, ValueAir and Tiger Airways and
Jetstar Asia, the latest addition. The news going around is that one or two
more are in the pipeline.
According to an industry insider, Singapore can't afford not to have
low-cost airlines when its neighbours
Thailand and
Malaysia are aggressively
promoting low-cost flying, else it risks losing business to them.
Singapore is hoping that low-cost airline will keep attracting tourists
and make it more appealing.
In terms of tourism, Singapore hasn't had a new mega project lately,
therefore, tourists who have already been to Singapore and looking for
something new might feel disappointed. Previously, Thai tourists went to
Singapore for shopping but these days shopping has lost its appeal for
Singapore is not cheap any more. It's cheaper to buy here in Bangkok, is
what some of those shoppers say.
Yet, Singapore's appeal endures. Window shopping, or just strolling
around Orchard mall or a boat ride and dinner around Clarke Quay or Boat
Quay is something that can be done in a day.
Shall we say then low-cost airlines have in fact endured Singapore's
appeal among Thais by making travel cheaper.
To Thais looking for a short break, it's definitely still one of the best
choices, and more so for those still looking forward to make their debut
visit overseas.
Singapore as it used to be
 Next
time you visit Singapore and feel like doing something other than shopping,
I recommend you go to China Town.
China Town is a place of historical interest. Today, it's developed into
a tourist attraction where you can shop for souvenirs at reasonable prices.
But I wouldn't recommend you to go there just for shopping or sipping
beer. One place that you should look up is the China Town Heritage Centre.
It looks like an ordinary souvenir shop from outside, but inside it's a
cultural museum.
It's housed in an old building that used to be shared by several families
before was bought, restored and turned into a museum. The museum tells the
story of the hardship of Chinese immigrants in Singapore in the early days.
The display on the first floor tells the background of the early Chinese
settlers who migrated to Singapore by boat. Then, it gradually reveals the
actual condition of life of those people as we walk down the corridors to
see the rooms they once occupied. The museum has managed to keep everything
in its usual place to truly reflect their real life in those days.
Each tiny room, size slightly bigger than a snooker table, has a history
of its own. There's one room in which a family of ten people once lived.
Then, there's a room that three male workers once shared. It's incredible
how people could live in such a tiny place but it gives visitors a thorough
understanding of the difficulties of early Chinese settlers in China Town.
The China Town Heritage Centre will give you a better understanding of
the history of Singapore and the life of early migrants before it developed
into the modern island state, as we see it today.
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