{"id":10065,"date":"2025-11-09T08:13:36","date_gmt":"2025-11-09T00:13:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=10065"},"modified":"2025-11-09T08:13:36","modified_gmt":"2025-11-09T00:13:36","slug":"chinese-tourists-flock-to-singapore-for-da-ka-moments-despite-the-high-prices","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=10065","title":{"rendered":"Chinese tourists flock to Singapore for \u2018da ka\u2019 moments, despite the high prices"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Melody Liu had been in Singapore<\/span><\/a> for just three days when she blew past her 5,000 yuan (HK$5,450) travel budget \u2013 and reached for her long-sleeved hooded shirt with attached visor to brave another day in the sweltering heat.<\/div>\n

\u201cI was so shocked when a 10-minute taxi ride cost more than 100 yuan, because it would cost less than 20 yuan back home,\u201d said the 32-year-old from Harbin in China\u2019s northeast. \u201cI knew that Singapore has a high cost of living, but it\u2019s a different matter to experience it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Liu is among the millions of Chinese tourists<\/span><\/a> who have poured into Singapore since the launch of a mutual visa-waiver arrangement<\/span><\/a> in February opened the floodgates to a new generation of travellers in their twenties and thirties seeking short, independent getaways.<\/div>\n
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I knew that Singapore has a high cost of living, but it\u2019s a different matter to experience it<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Melody Liu, 32, Chinese tourist<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

More than 3 million mainland Chinese visited Singapore in 2024 \u2013 a 126 per cent year-on-year increase \u2013 accounting for nearly one in five of all arrivals to the city state. Another 2.5 million made the trip in the first nine months of this year alone.<\/p>\n

Observers say the surge has been fuelled by the visa-waiver agreement, pent-up post-pandemic demand and the rise of da ka<\/em> tourism \u2013 a travel trend among young Chinese who seek photogenic, social media-ready experiences.<\/p>\n

Singapore\u2019s strong presence on Chinese platforms such as RedNote<\/span><\/a>, where slick itineraries and viral travel content abound, has helped cement its reputation as a clean, modern and aspirational destination.<\/div>\n

But the city state\u2019s steep prices have become a lightning rod for debate among the younger, budget-conscious, first-time visitors now flocking there. Industry insiders attribute this partly to the Singapore dollar\u2019s appreciation against the yuan and the shift in tourist demographics, among other factors.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n


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