[SINGAPORE] Tourism receipts reached S$23.9 billion in the first three quarters of 2025, rising 6.5 per cent year on year and setting a record high for the period, the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) said in its year-in-review on Tuesday (Feb 3).
The January-to-September takings put full-year performance on track to exceed the statutory board’s projection of between S$29 billion and S$30.5 billion. Full-year data will be published in the second quarter of 2026.
This new mark comes despite lower-than-expected arrivals. Singapore welcomed 16.9 million international visitors last year, just missing the projection of 17 million to 18.5 million. STB has said that it is pursuing quality tourism, focusing on greater value for the economy rather than visitor volumes.
Breaking down the numbers
Tourism-receipt growth was largely driven by sightseeing, entertainment and gaming, as well as food and beverage (F&B), which were each up 15 per cent year on year.
Mainland China (S$3.68 billion), Indonesia (S$2.09 billion) and Australia (S$1.54 billion) were the top tourism receipt-generating markets in the nine-month period. These figures exclude receipts from the sightseeing, entertainment and gaming segment, which is traditionally left out due to commercial sensitivities regarding Singapore’s two casinos.
Tourism receipts from mainland China rose 3 per cent from the year-ago period, with F&B leading the growth, jumping 19 per cent.
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The market also kept its place as Singapore’s top source of international visitors, with some 3.1 million arrivals for the whole of 2025.
Rounding out the top five in terms of visitor volumes were Indonesia (2.4 million), Malaysia (1.3 million), Australia (1.3 million) and India (1.2 million).
Notably, arrivals from Australia were up 8 per cent year on year, as it contributed a record number of international visitors.
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STB noted that there were declines from some markets. It flagged the 12.5 per cent fall in visitors from Vietnam, to 344,000 in 2025 from 393,000 a year earlier. The agency attributed this to “greater price sensitivity around travel”.
Arrivals from the Philippines fell 6.8 per cent year on year to 726,000, from 779,000 in 2024, “following the previous year’s spike driven by large-scale entertainment events in Singapore”.
“Overall, total international visitor arrivals remained healthy, and notable growth was recorded from Japan (10 per cent), Malaysia (8 per cent), Germany (5 per cent) and the US (4 per cent), representing a good mix of short, mid and long-haul markets,” said STB.
Sectoral performances
The hotel industry’s performance was largely stable in 2025.
The average room rate slipped 1 per cent year on year to S$273.56, while revenue per available room dipped 0.4 per cent to S$244.04.
The average occupancy rate, however, rose 0.5 percentage point to 81.9 per cent in 2025, from 81.4 per cent a year earlier.
A total of 644 new hotel keys were added in 2025, noted STB.
Among the new openings were Raffles Sentosa Singapore – the country’s second Raffles property and first villa-only hotel – Mandai Rainforest Resort by Banyan Tree, The Laurus at Resorts World Sentosa, Mett Singapore and Mama Shelter.
Turning to the cruise industry, there were 375 ship calls, marking a 10 per cent climb, as well as passenger throughput of more than two million, up 9 per cent year on year. STB said that the sector “demonstrated strong momentum”, adding that this “(cemented) Singapore’s position as the region’s leading cruise hub” in 2025.
New homeported ships last year include StarDream Cruises’ Star Voyager, Royal Caribbean International’s Ovation of the Seas and The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s Luminara.
STB added that these “new and refreshed experiences across multiple industries” boosted visitor spending.
The agency also highlighted new attractions such as Rainforest Wild Asia; major events such as the Art SG fair and Blackpink’s three-night concert tour; lifestyle experiences such as Cartier’s Nature Sauvage high jewellery showcase; and meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions (Mice) tourism.
On Mice, STB noted the “packed calendar” in 2025, with events such as the Milken Institute Asia Summit and the Sun Pharma Star Club Awards.
Developing the sector
“These efforts across different industries reflect business confidence in Singapore’s tourism sector,” it said.
“Local and international businesses recognise the country’s strength as a leading tourism destination and a well-connected hub that enables significant visitor flows and provides access to diverse international markets.”
STB added that this was further demonstrated by major infrastructural developments.
Both of Singapore’s integrated resorts saw significant expansions, the Porsche Experience Centre Singapore broke ground, and Therme Group was awarded a tender to develop and operate a S$1 billion wellness attraction.
The S$40 million Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore expansion, which increased passenger capacity from 6,800 to 11,700, was also completed.
STB chief executive Melissa Ow said the strong tourism-receipt performance in 2025 “puts us on a steady trajectory towards achieving our Tourism 2040 ambitions”.
“We are attracting visitors who value the distinctive experiences that Singapore offers,” she added.
“To maintain this growth momentum and reinforce our destination appeal and global hub status, we will continue to develop a strong pipeline of differentiated products, events and experiences.”
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