The world may have shrunk for stay-home globetrotters but they can always whirl around Singapore.
Spin around town in a vintage Vespa sidecar on the Crazy Rich Asians route – or explore the hip-heritage Blair Plain enclave on foot.
Try a new murder-mystery-game tour in Chinatown – or step back in time at the last kampung, wide-eyed Gen Alpha kids in tow.
With the phase two reopening of Singapore's economy, tours have resumed since July, this time for discerning Singaporeans curious about hyper-local journeys.
Mr Simon Wong, co-founder of the SingaporeSidecars tour agency and social enterprise, reckons that his vintage Vespa sidecar tours are distinctive enough to appeal to citizens, who made up 25 per cent of his pre-Covid-19 clientele.
"We discovered happily that many Singaporeans have not really explored Singapore,'' says the British-born Hong Konger.
"It's also a human thing. Growing up, I spent my time exploring elsewhere but not London. It is easy for Singaporeans to hop elsewhere."
This is a good time to multiply local tour content, he says, now that most Singaporeans are staying home.
Indeed, Singaporeans remain cautious about travelling: More than a third polled by digital travel platform Agoda say they will travel with confidence only when a vaccine is found.
This figure rises to 44 per cent for the cautious cohort of Gen Zs, Agoda announced last Wednesday.
Agoda's country director for Singapore, Ms Giuliana Riitano, says: "There is so much to rediscover, from exploring different neighbourhoods to simply indulging in that decadent little bit of luxury that hotels provide."
Local experiences and tours listed on Agoda include batik painting classes, photo-walks in Little India and a World War II trail in Changi by coach.
Meanwhile, for team bonding or safe distancing, Airbnb Experiences has a slate of online experiences such as soundbath meditation and curry cooking.
Mr Parin Mehta, director (Asia-Pacific) of Airbnb Experiences, says some Singapore-hosRead More – Source
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