Tourism Award 2006
29th March 2007
Esplanade Concert Hall
Singapore

Tourism Awards 2006 Honours the Stars of Singapore’s Tourism Industry

Some 36 individuals and organisations in the travel and tourism industry who have excelled with outstanding concepts or extended exemplary service standards were honoured at the prestigious Tourism Awards 2006 presentation ceremony today.

Organised annually by the Singapore Tourism Board (STB), the awards ceremony, held at the Esplanade Concert Hall, was graced by Minister of State for Trade and Industry, S Iswaran.  Over 1,400 guests from the travel and tourism industry and industry leaders attended the event.

Now in its 21st year, the Tourism Awards has evolved from being a tourist- and travel-centric recognition programme into one that encompasses all service industries, ranging from hospitality to entertainment and nightlife, new business concepts and entrepreneurship to tourism related products and attractions.  It has also grown in size from the initial seven categories to the current 28. Over 138,000 nominations were received this year, reflecting the increasing local and overseas patronage of the Awards.

As part of its continual efforts to encourage the industry to innovate, create unique experiences and distinctive service elements to enhance Singapore's competitiveness, the STB introduced three new categories to Tourism Awards 2006. They include the Top 10 Best Family Experiences, Best Tourism Host – Nightspots and the Uniquely Singapore award. The new awards recognise tourism players who contributed significantly to some of the key priority areas in STB’s Tourism 2015 plans and will help the industry achieve S$30 billion in tourism receipts and 17 million in visitor arrivals by 2015.

Singapore is already a leading destination for families travelling to this region. The new Top 10 Best Family Experiences award aims to recognise and encourage industry players to continue to innovate and create unique experiences for families travelling to Singapore. Winners of this new award will be recognised and specially highlighted in STB’s extensive marketing efforts locally and overseas. The timely introduction of the Best Tourism Host – Nightspot category aims to put emphasis on service quality even as Singapore’s entertainment and lifestyle landscape continues to transform with many new and vibrant entertainment options. The Uniquely Singapore Award honours individuals, organisations, events or projects that best encapsulate the essence, personality and inspiration behind the destination brand. Industry players’ concerted efforts in leveraging on and bringing the Uniquely Singapore brand to life will inspire a strong positive perception among the global audience and achieve top-of-mind awareness when travellers make their plans.

Mr Simon Israel, Chairman of STB, congratulated the finalists and winners who through their efforts have helped raise service standards in Singapore. He said, “The annual Tourism Awards recognises service role models and leaders who have been outstanding in embracing and championing service excellence. The winners and finalists of the Tourism Awards 2006 have demonstrated their dedication and willingness to go the extra mile to ensure that Singapore maintains its competitiveness and remains attractive as a destination.”

This year, two categories, the Best Singapore Education Programme and Best Business Event Experience, have been subsumed under the Singapore Education Awards 2006 and Singapore Business Events Awards respectively. These award ceremonies are separately organised by STB to put emphasis in and recognise the outstanding players in the two growth segments of BTMICE and education services. Nevertheless, the top four tourism award categories, namely Outstanding Contribution to Tourism, Tourism Entrepreneur of the Year, New Tourism Entrepreneur of the Year, and Special Recognition Award, will continue to recognise outstanding personalities or organisations from all the tourism sectors that have made a significant impact to the tourism industry.