This year, we welcomed the new Sentosa Sensoryscape, which features six sensory gardens promising an enchanting and immersive night experience.
Many have gone down south to check out the installations and admire all the gardens have to offer.
In just three years, we’ll be welcoming yet another attraction, as well as another one three years after that.
Porsche Experience Centre By 2027
Porsche has announced Singapore as the location of its 11th Porsche Experience Centre, which aims to be operational in 2027.
The announcement was made during the Singapore Tourism Board’s (STB) Tourism Industry Conference 2024 on 10 May by Minister for Sustainability and the Environment and Minister-in-charge of Trade Relations Grace Fu.
First in South-East Asia
The centre will be South-east Asia’s first experience centre by Porsche.
It will also be the world’s first Porsche Experience Centre conceptualised from the onset to provide excitement to both local and regional Porsche customers and fans.
The centre will be similar to iconic motor racing venues such as Silverstone in Britain and Hockenheimring in Germany.
Positioned just a 20-minute drive from Changi Airport, and close to the upcoming Aviation Park MRT station along the planned Cross Island Line, this centre will be easily accessible to visitors.
Featuring a 2km handling track, a Porsche aftersales facility, and a range of experiences suitable for the whole family, such as themed exhibitions and immersive racing simulators, the centre promises a fun- and wonder-filled experience for visitors.
Maybe you can’t afford a Porsche, but you can certainly try the racing simulator to get a feel of it.
In line with the Singapore Green Plan 2030 aimed at advancing sustainable development, the fleet of two- and four-door Porsche cars at Singapore’s centre will prominently feature a significant number of electric vehicles.
Wellness Attraction In Marina Bay By 2030
About three years after the Porsche Experience Centre opens its doors, we can expect a wellness attraction in Marina South, close to the Marina Barrage.
As a “City in Nature”, Singapore is known as an urban wellness destination that embodies holistic wellness.
With wellness rising in popularity due to trends on social media highlighting an active and healthy lifestyle, Singapore has seen an opportunity to grow.
“The wellness economy presents opportunities for Singapore to capture market share in the growing global wellness space,” said STB chief executive Melissa Ow.
“With the rising demand for more restorative and wellness-related experiences, we want to position Singapore as an urban wellness haven,” said Ms Fu.
She said the location would allow the attraction to leverage the waterfront and places of interest in the vicinity.
According to Ms Ow, the global wellness market hit $7 billion in 2022 and is projected to grow to almost $11 billion in 2028.
Tender To Be Launched Soon
There will be a call for tender for the development of the wellness attraction in the coming months.
Separately, a tender has been called for wellness and fitness lifestyle proposals for Dempsey, and the closing date is 29 May.
What We May See At The Wellness Attraction
While we can’t exactly expect things like free spa treatments and massage sessions, we can make a few guesses on what we might see at the attraction.
The wellness attraction is expected to offer a variety of experiences, which may include complementary health facilities, light- and frequency-based therapies, and more.
The centre may even feature water- or equipment-based types of fitness experiences similar to the spin bicycles at Jewel Changi, which are situated near the famous indoor waterfall.
Strong Tourism Outlook
2023’s tourism receipts hit $27.2 billion, exceeding STB’s forecast for $24.5 billion to $26 billion. This has resulted in growing confidence, and STB is projecting between $27.5 billion and $29 billion in tourism receipts this year.
If the upper bound of this projection is achieved, it will be a new record for Singapore tourism, exceeding even pre-pandemic figures.
Before COVID-19 struck, 2019 was a record year for Singapore, with tourism receipts coming in at $27.7 billion that year.
2023’s strong performance, the pace of resumption in global travel, and conditions across Singapore’s key markets are several factors contributing to STB’s optimistic projections for this year.
Flight capacities for some of Singapore’s top source markets like China, India, and South Korea have reportedly exceeded pre-pandemic flight capacities as of last week, and visitor arrivals in 2024 have already shown strong signs of recovery.
“Arrivals from more than half of our top 15 markets have fully recovered or exceeded pre-pandemic levels, with Malaysia, Germany, Australia and the UK showing the strongest recovery,” said Ms Fu.
Events And Concerts to Thank For Strong Performance
Ms Fu attributed this year’s first quarter’s strong performance to “a series of blockbuster events and concerts” such as the Singapore Airshow and concerts by stars like Coldplay and Taylor Swift.
“These events attracted a large number of local and foreign attendees, and generated much buzz for Singapore,” Ms Fu said.
With more concerts by huge stars such as Laufey and Olivia Rodrigo set to happen in a few months, we can expect numbers to stay strong.
Marine Park
Other big announcements have been made recently, such as plans to designate a second marine park at Lazarus and Kusu.
Minister for National Development Desmond Lee announced yesterday (9 May) that the two islands have been picked as the proposed site for Singapore’s second marine park.
The actual boundaries of the proposed park are still being discussed and are targeted to be finalised next year.
Mandai Rainforest Resort
On 10 May, the new Mandai Rainforest Resort was announced. The resort will be situated near Singapore Zoo and River Wonders, and will be operational from the first half of next year.
Before that, we can expect a freely accessible boardwalk to be opened later this year. The boardwalk, which has been been built along the edge of the Upper Seletar Reservoir, will let visitors experience the sights and sounds of nature.
Plans were also announced for a new Rainforest Wild attraction, which will be the first zoological park in asia to integrate adventure elements into its design.
Rainforest Wild promises forest treks and abseiling that will make thrill-seekers jump for joy, as well as family-friendly boardwalk for those with young and older persons.
