LOCAL TOURIST ATTRACTIONS

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LOCAL TOURIST ATTRACTIONS:

(Affordability for average Singaporeans): 18.

Mr Zaqy Mohamad asked the Minister for Trade and Industry (a) whether there has been an assessment of the affordability of local tourist attractions for the average Singaporean; and (b) whether the Ministry will consider providing more concessions to make our tourist attractions more affordable to students and families during school holidays, especially for those from the lower-income households.

The Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry (Mr S Iswaran) (for the Minister for Trade and Industry): Mr Speaker, Sir, Singapore has a wide range of tourism offerings that cater to both foreign and local visitors, from paid-access themed attractions to free access heritage sites and parks.

The admission charges for paid-access attractions are determined by market forces and are dependent on the individual attractions' costs, marketing goals and target audience. Each must find its own balance between price, attendance and financial objectives. For instance, the Science Centre and National Museum charge $6 and $10 respectively per adult, whereas the Singapore Zoo and Singapore Flyer charge about $20 and $30 respectively. Generally, the attractions impose a lower admission fee for children and students and special rates are also available for family admission for some attractions. So, we have the Friends of the Zoo membership card which allows two adults and three children admission all year round for an annual fee of $150.

Some also offer promotions over the holidays. Some examples are the Singapore Underwater World as well as the Singapore Discovery Centre and the Escape Theme Park.

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In addition, there are many attractions that require minimal or no admission charges. Specifically, there are no admission charges for key tourist attractions like Botanic Gardens, Singapore River, Merlion Park, Mount Faber, Orchard Road and Chinatown.

STB has compared Singapore's admission rates for themed attractions against comparable quality attractions in other global cities. By and large, our rates remain competitive. For a family of four, a visit to the Singapore Zoo costs S$50, whereas it costs £49 (S$125) in London, or A$155 (S$185) in Queensland, Australia, for a similar visit.

Going forward, STB will continue to work towards growing our suite of tourist attractions. As part of their overall business and marketing plan, all our tourist attractions will have to continue to pay close attention to their affordability and accessibility to local visitors who are key to ensuring their continued viability.

Mr Zaqy Mohamad: Would the Ministry consider tiering the entry fees for lower-income Singaporeans, or even Singaporeans for that matter, and the tourists? In that sense, I know that is being done in some countries. We pride ourselves as a nation of equal opportunities, but it is hard for the lower-income families earning, say, below $1,500 or even $1,000 a month, to enjoy the attractions or to have their kids exposed to the Singapore Flyer or even the Zoo.

Mr Iswaran: Mr Speaker, Sir, as I said, there are different categories of tourist attractions in Singapore. We have quite a variety of free or very low cost attractions which all of us can participate in and enjoy. For the themed attractions which are run as businesses, it would be inappropriate for the Government to mandate that the operators offer specific discounts or tiered fees, as the Member suggests, in order to facilitate affordability.

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Having said that, most of them on their own accord already offer various pricing packages in response to their assessment of the market. So, let me take the Singapore Flyer as an example, because I know that in recent times some talk about that as being expensive. But even for the Singapore Flyer, while they have certain rates, they offer significantly discounted rates for students and the elderly. They also have family packages. I think for about $150, you get quite a good deal for unlimited visits, and so on. In general, they also price for off-peaks, in order to try and maximise utilisation. So, I think we should leave it to the private operators of these themed attractions because they have made the investments on the basis that they are going to be free to price and run their business according to the market. It would be inappropriate for us as a Government, notwithstanding a noble social objective, to mandate such a requirement. I think we leave it to the market and, if necessary, the community organisations and grassroots organisations can run various excursions and visits on a subsidised basis.