Average stay of tourists in Singapore feared to be declining

Even hotels' RevPAR dropped 2.6%.

According to OCBC, for Jan to Apr this year, RevPAR for Singapore hotels fell 2.6% YoY to S$218. In addition, while visitor arrivals increased by 6.4% in 1Q13, gross lettings for 1Q13 grew by only ~2.8% to 2.8m room nights. 

OCBC said that on a per capita basis, visitor arrivals are converting into fewer room nights, continuing a trend we note for 2012 (gross lettings were flat YoY in 2012 while visitor arrivals climbed 9.1%).

"Average length of stay per visitor is likely to be declining. We understand that a number of tourists transiting through Singapore may now be exiting Changi airport for day-trips. Our sources indicate that hotel bookings remain weak through 2Q13," OCBC said.