SINGAPORE, 25 November 2019: Royal Caribbean International has entered into a new multimillion-dollar marketing partnership with the Singapore Tourism Board and Changi Airport Group to promote fly-cruises.
This five-year tripartite partnership should generate 623,000 international fly-cruise visitors to Singapore, with earnings of SGD430 million in tourism receipts by 2024.
The announcement coincides with the cruise line’s five-year Quantum Class deployment in Singapore, which includes Quantum of the Seas, one of Asia’s largest cruise ships.
To kick off the partnership, Quantum of the Seas arrives fresh from a multimillion-dollar refurbishment for her six-month homeporting season in Singapore. It’s the longest ever Singapore deployment for a Quantum Class ship – which is expected to add some 150,000 overseas and local guests to the local cruising scene.
According to the cruise line, Singapore’s homeport status, world-class port infrastructure, and seamless connectivity to other destinations around the world position the city as a crucial destination in Royal Caribbean’s regional strategy.
The five-year partnership is expected to generate at least 60% higher tourism receipts compared to the previous partnerships combined. The first partnership ran from 2015 till 2018 to market Mariner of the Seas, followed by another three-year partnership launched in 2017 for Ovation of the Seas and Voyager of the Seas. Both partnerships have generated strong tourism dollars of SGD260 million.
Southeast Asia’s cruise passengers should grow at 4.6% to 6.4% annum to reach up to an estimated 4.5 million passengers by 2035.
The partnership will target key regional markets such as India, Indonesia and Malaysia, as well as long-haul markets including Australia, United Kingdom and the UK.
Singapore Tourism Board director cruises, Annie Chang said: “Royal Caribbean’s longest Singapore homeport deployment with a larger ship underscores its confidence in Singapore and the region. Quantum of the Seas will diversify cruise offerings, entrenching Singapore as a top fly-cruise hub in Asia.”
Given Changi Airport’s strong air connectivity to some 380 cities, Singapore is well-placed to tap into the fly-cruise sector and serve as a cruise hub for the region. To enhance Singapore’s attractiveness as a stopover point and support the growth of the fly-cruise hub, the Group recently launched a seamless intermodal transfer service for passengers flying into Singapore and sailing out on cruise lines and ferries.
Passengers who take up this service will have their bags delivered from their arriving flights to their departing ship and enjoy facilities of the Changi Lounge located in the new Jewel Changi Airport, before being transferred to the cruise terminal.
This intermodal transfer service has benefited fly-cruise guests from China, India and from the Southeast Asian region.
From 1 December 2019, Royal Caribbean guests from China will be able to enjoy this seamless transfer service as part of new fly-cruise travel packages for sailing out of Singapore.
