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STB to enhance the scheme and also extend SingapoRediscovers campaign

Singapore, 30 April 2021 – The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) today announced that the SingapoRediscovers Vouchers (SRV) scheme will be extended for another six months to 31 December 2021. STB will also introduce enhancements to make it easier for Singapore citizens to use their Vouchers and support tourism businesses.

As of 30 April 2021, over a million adult Singapore citizens have used their SRV at least once, making a total of 1.3 million transactions. To date, the SRV scheme has contributed over $200 million to Singapore’s tourism-related businesses. This consists of approximately $147 million in vouchers and cash payments on tourism bookings, and a further $55 million[1] in additional spending on sectors such as retail, F&B and transport.

Both large and smaller merchants have seen uplift in their revenues since the launch of the SRV scheme in December 2020. STB has observed strong interest in attraction bookings, which make up more than half of all SRV transactions, as well as hotel bookings which have seen the highest transaction revenue (see Annex A). Tour bookings have also more than tripled between April 2021 and December 2020.

STB Chief Executive Mr Keith Tan said: “Since the launch of the SingapoRediscovers campaign and the SRV scheme last year, we have been heartened by the tourism sector’s efforts to create new products and experiences for locals. These initiatives have had a positive impact on our economy beyond tourism. The extension of the SRV scheme is intended to sustain this momentum.”

“Many Singaporeans have also given us useful suggestions to improve the SRV scheme. I thank them for their feedback, which we have studied carefully together with the five authorised booking partners. We have made some improvements in the last few months, and will continue to do so, so that more Singaporeans can rediscover Singapore using their Vouchers.”

STB will work closely with the authorised booking partners and merchants to extend the validity of SRV-eligible products. Products that are valid from 1 July 2021 can be purchased from 1 June 2021.

Redemptions using NRIC

To redeem their SRV online, Singaporeans must log in to their Singpass account and book their preferred products through any of the five authorised booking partners. For those who need more help, these partners provide booking assistance at physical counters located within or near Community Centres/Clubs (CCs).

From the third quarter of 2021, citizens who are unable to access their Singpass account may visit over 30 CCs to redeem their Vouchers using their NRICs. Authorised SRV ambassadors will scan their NRIC using a secure Government mobile application, while staff from authorised booking partners will assist with booking SRV-eligible products. For a shorter waiting time, citizens are advised to decide on the product they want and their preferred dates before visiting these counters.

Getting the best deals with greater convenience

To make it easier to search for SRV-eligible offerings on a single portal, STB will enhance the SRV website to feature more monthly deals from all five authorised booking partners, as well as information on the various SRV donation drives.

STB and the authorised booking partners are also working with various attractions to provide SRV redemption counters at attraction locations. For instance, the new Sentosa SRV redemption counter at Sentosa Express VivoCity Station is now open from 9am to 6pm daily, for citizens to redeem SRV-eligible Sentosa offerings instantly on-site. Redemptions must be made via Singpass and are subject to availability of products and timeslots.

STB will continue to enhance the redemption process, including working with attractions to make it easier for users to book timeslots for their products.

To offer more value and convenience, STB has worked closely with the People’s Association (PA) and the authorised booking partners to organise SRV-eligible tours to various attractions. There have been 8 customised tours to date, with over 400 participants in March and April. More than 50 tours are being planned for May and June.

The Heartland Enterprise Centre Singapore (HECS) has also partnered with City Tours to launch a series of SRV-eligible heartland tours. Following the four tours conducted since last year, another six will be introduced to promote precincts with distinctive themes and activities

such as disappearing trades, photo spots, interesting food and shopping hunts. HECS will be working with the Federation of Merchants’ Associations, Singapore (FMAS) and media partners to curate and execute the heartland tours.

Extension of SingapoRediscovers campaign

The SingapoRediscovers domestic campaign was launched by STB, Enterprise Singapore (ESG) and Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC) in July 2020 to support lifestyle and tourism businesses by encouraging locals to explore different sides of Singapore.

Since then, more than 200 merchants offering over 1,200 promotions have been featured, such as nature-themed explorations, food workshops, heartland trails and even pet-friendly excursions. The campaign will also be extended, with special bundles, diverse experiences, and more community-led initiatives to encourage locals to continue rediscovering Singapore.

END

 

Annex A – SRV transactions by industry

 

Industry

Transaction revenue

Number of transactions

Tours

$11.4 million

124,000

Attractions

$51.6 million

793,000

Hotels

$80.3 million

292,000

Bundled packages

$3.7 million

35,000

 

[1] Based on STB’s internal estimates