East Asian destinations popular at Natas fair as global travel heads for full recovery

SINGAPORE – Top destinations Japan, South Korea and Taiwan continue to be popular among travellers shopping at this year’s National Association of Travel Agents Singapore (Natas) fair.

It runs from Friday to Sunday, 10am to 9.30pm at Singapore Expo Hall 5.

With 51 exhibitors and a projected attendance of 75,000 visitors over three days, the fair has grown since the 2022 edition six months ago. It had around 40 exhibitors and 68,787 visitors then.

There is some way to go before the fair returns to its pre-Covid-19-pandemic heyday, when 80 or so exhibitors set up booths in 2019.

But East Asia’s reopening to leisure travel will pave the way for a full recovery.

Since the last fair in August 2022,

there has been a surge of interest in Japan, Taiwan and, more recently, China.

Travel agencies such as Chan Brothers Travel and EU Holidays have reinstated tour packages to China, with scenic spots drawing the most interest.

Among them are the Jiuzhai Valley National Park, known for its striking turquoise lakes, and Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, where towering mountain pillars are said to have inspired the Hallelujah floating mountains of the 2009 epic fantasy movie, Avatar.

Mr Jeremiah Wong, senior marketing communications manager at Chan Brothers Travel, said customers do not have any significant concerns about the Covid-19 situation in China.

He added that the company’s Travel Safe Travel Smart initiatives, such as reduced group sizes and the inclusion of Covid-19 protection benefits, have helped reassure customers.

Tours to China now comprise a maximum of 30 people, compared with 40 before the pandemic.

EU Holidays director Ong Han Jie said travel agencies view China as an important destination due to its sheer size and number of itineraries the country can offer.

Beyond China, travellers are looking for experiences other than shopping and sightseeing, he added. These include leisure activities such as classes on making kimchi or tteok-bokki (rice cake) in South Korea, and skiing and hiking trips.

A Gold Coast Marathon trip, happening this June, has drawn around 40 passenger bookings, he says.

Bank analyst Claire Yeo, 30, was at the fair with her parents to pay for two tours – a seven-day, free-and-easy tour in Taiwan booked with ASA Holidays that costs $1,500 a person, and a nine-day Japan trip with EU Holidays covering Tokyo, Nara, Kyoto and Osaka that costs $3,400 a person.

They had booked these tours in January but were at the fair to pay for them and to redeem two luggage bags from promotional tie-ups with OCBC and Citibank.

“Travelling as part of a package tour is more convenient, and we do not have to worry about the language barrier in Japan,” she said.

Meanwhile, freelance tour guide Lincy Kwan, 58, was looking to book a trip to Japan with a group of friends. The seven women have known one another for more than three decades and travelled together regularly before the pandemic. This will be their first group trip since then.

Natas president Steven Ler said the travel industry is in the midst of a “huge comeback”.

He added: “The appetite for overseas travel is high as many desire to explore the world again and go ‘revenge travelling’, in hopes of making up for lost time.”

Admission to the fair is free. Go to

natastravelfair.travel

for more information.