OK, thnks

OK, thnks

Singapore remains Asia's top MICE destination

Singapore has served as a trading hub and financial center for Southeast Asia thanks to its strategic location and environment conducive to international business activities.

Located at the crossroads of the world in the Strait of Malacca, Singapore is home to at least 7,000 multinational corporations and several thousand financial institutions and trading firms.

Numerous multinational companies have set up their headquarters in the country, not only to enable them to run their businesses more efficiently but also to have easy access to the global market.

Many companies from neighboring countries, such as Indonesia, hold their corporate meetings and training sessions in the city state. They also use the country as an "exhibition ground" to showcase their products and services to international buyers.

It is no wonder that Singapore has become an important destination for Meeting, Incentive, Conventions and Exhibitions (MICE) in the region.

Most five-star hotels in Singapore are equipped with superb meeting rooms and exhibition spaces. The meeting venues cater to international customers' variety of needs, whether for a corporate meeting, workshop or training with 20 participants or a symposium with over 500 delegates.

Particular hotels even provide a conference room with a seating capacity of up to 3,000 guests. With Singapore being the third most wired nation in the world, Internet and teleconferencing services are available at many business hotels and venues.

There are numerous convention and exhibition centers in the country. Suntec Singapore International Convention and Exhibition Center and Singapore Expo are among the major players in the business. Both are able to accommodate a meeting with participants of up to 12,000 people.

Apart from corporate meeting, training sessions or trade exhibitions, a MICE package also includes leisure activities such as trips to Singapore's major tourist attractions. Visitors are, for instance, offered the chance to go on a night safari, a tour to explore different cultures of multi-racial Singapore by strolling through respective ethnic zones -- China Town, Little India, Geyland Serai, Arab Street or Katong -- a visit to Sentosa Island and to joining a team-building program.

Easy access

From year to year, Singapore's MICE industry has grown significantly. In addition to its strategic geographical position Singapore is also well known for its accessibility, efficient public transportation and strong commitment to security. This has made the country known as the gateway to Asia.

International visitors have easy access to Singapore thanks to its excellent air connectivity. The award-winning Changi Airport serves at least 3,544 weekly flights by 76 international airlines to over 175 cities worldwide.

"Singapore is like another city in Indonesia in terms of distance and flight. There are frequent daily flights from Jakarta to Singapore, Denpasar to Singapore and Yogyakarta to Singapore," said Robert Guy, managing director of Pacific World, one of Singapore's Destination Management Companies (DMCs), referring to the proximity of Singapore to Indonesia.

During their stay in Singapore, MICE visitors will find it a breeze traveling around the country, with its efficient transportation network of buses, taxis and the modern Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) rail system.

The country's electronic road pricing system allows vehicles to travel on free-flowing expressways. "Singapore has a high standard of service. From the moment I arrived at the airport, to being transferred to a hotel and traveling around the city, everything was convenient and comfortable," said the US-based Motivation's director, Josh Brown, who joined Singapore Tourism Board's (STB) educational familiarization program recently.

More importantly, Singapore is safe for visitors. They can go home to their hotel or apartment from a cafe late at night without the feeling of being unsecured.

"Our government is committed to safety," said STB's Business Travel MICE Group acting assistant chief Aloysius Arlando.

It is not surprising that Singapore has seen an increase in the number of business-related visitor arrivals over the past few years.

On the rise

Data at the Singapore Tourism Board showed that the country's business-related visitor arrivals reached two million in 2004, accounting for some 26 percent of the country's total visitor arrivals of 8.4 million.

"The 2004's business-related visitor arrivals represent an approximate 60 percent increase over 2003, and a 30 percent rise over 2002," said Arlando.

Despite the small number, compared to that of leisure travel- related visitor arrivals, the business travel contributed more in terms of revenue because business-related visitors had higher daily spending, he said.

According to the STB, Indonesia ranked top in Business Travel MICE (BTMICE) visitor arrivals for 2004, with 17 percent, followed by Japan and China with 10 percent, Malaysia with eight percent and the United States and India with six percent.

Players in the MICE industry attributed the increase in business visitors to the government's strong support of the industry.

"The MICE industry is good for the economy of Singapore due to it multiplier effects. Visitors to Singapore will keep restaurants, hotels, transportation service providers and other related service providers afloat," said Sylvia Phua, chief executive officer of Meeting Planners International Pte, a professional conference organizer.

Certainly, the success story of Singapore's BTMICE segment is inseparable from the STB's massive BTMICE promotional campaign.

Following the success of its "Make It Singapore" campaign, the STB will continue to offer incentives to event organizers till December 2005 through the campaign.

The "Make It Singapore" campaign launched in 2003 attracted event organizers to hold at least 40 major MICE events in the city state, some of which were held in 2004, with the others to take place this year through until the end of 2007.

The events are expected to generate S$50 million in revenue. A total of 60,000 "visitor nights" are expected from the events.

The STB said that "Make It Singapore Plus" uses "visitor nights" rather than "room nights" to measure the length of MICE visitors' stays. A "room night" refers to the number of rooms occupied on a given night, whereas a "visitor night" refers to the actual number of people being accommodated.

It is also used as the criteria an event organized must fulfill to benefit from the campaign incentives.

"The change in the criteria will make it easier for event organizers to qualify for the incentives offered," it said.

Under the campaign, event organizers are entitled to attractive benefits such as video conferencing, the provision of welcome gifts for foreign delegates, team-building activities for corporate meetings and incentive groups and publicity support.

The STB's acting assistant chief executive for BTMICE Aloysius Arlando said that to qualify for the incentives, event organizers should confirm that they will hold an event in Singapore one or two years in advance. Events to be held by the year 2007 should, for example, be confirmed on Dec. 31, this year at the latest.

"We are encouraged by the positive response to the "Make It Singapore" campaign. We are confident that "Make It Singapore Plus" will be also successful," Arlando said.

The "Make It Singapore Plus" campaign is expected to generate 100,000 visitor nights and an estimated S$100 million in revenues.

No doubt, with all its aforementioned advantages, Singapore will remain Asia's favorite MICE destination.