Statos: Singapore visitor arrivals to Sarawak hit record high in 2025

KUCHING (Feb 3): Sarawak recorded its highest-ever number of visitor arrivals from Singapore in 2025, marking a significant milestone in tourism and trade relations between the state and the Republic.

The Sarawak Trade and Tourism Office Singapore (Statos) said in a statement that total arrivals from Singapore reached 64,295 visitors last year, representing a 5.8 per cent increase from 59,793 arrivals in 2024.

“Based on an estimated average expenditure of RM3,500 per visitor, Singaporean travellers contributed about RM225 million in tourism receipts to Sarawak in 2025.

“The year-on-year growth alone generated an additional RM15.7 million for the state’s economy, benefitting businesses in the hospitality, retail and transportation sectors,” it said.

Statos noted that the figures exclude expatriates residing in Singapore, indicating that the actual economic impact may be significantly higher.

In 2025, Statos also secured international and public school groups from Singapore for educational trips to Sarawak, generating more than RM2 million in revenue and exceeding initial targets.

The initiative strengthened Sarawak’s position as a destination for education tourism and experiential learning.

Statos further facilitated engagements between Sarawak agencies and Singapore’s education sector, including discussions on joint projects, industrial attachments and academic collaborations.

The office said its overall performance in 2025 reflected strong outcomes in education tourism, meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE), niche travel segments, trade engagement and destination branding.

Statos attributed the record performance to integrated digital and traditional marketing strategies, including media partnerships with Mediacorp’s MeWatch TV and radio stations 958, 972 and 933, as well as extensive social media campaigns that generated more than 100 million video views.

“More than 250 companies were supported in trade and tourism linkages between Sarawak and Singapore, while niche segments such as Halal tourism were further developed.

“The growth coincided with strengthened bilateral relations, with the planned opening of the Singapore Consulate in Sarawak expected to improve travel facilitation and economic collaboration,” it said.

A key contributor was the Sarawak MEGA Fair 2025 held in October at Suntec City, Singapore, which recorded sales of more than 8,000 Sarawak food items and reached over 50 million online viewers globally.

Statos chairman Tan Sri Datuk Amar Mohamad Morshidi Abdul Ghani said the increase of more than 4,500 visitors year-on-year reflected Sarawak’s growing appeal among Singaporean travellers, particularly for short getaways.

Statos also expressed appreciation to state agencies and industry partners, including the Sarawak Ministry of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts, Sarawak Tourism Board, Business Events Sarawak, Invest Sarawak, as well as tourism and hospitality stakeholders, for contributing to the achievement.