Amex Trendex: Singaporeans plan to spend the most on travel this holiday season

SINGAPORE, Oct. 15, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- According to American Express' Trendex, Singaporean travellers plan to spend the most on travel this holiday season out of the 13 geographies polled. This Trendex studies consumers' travel trends for the upcoming holiday season between November 2024 to January 2025.

Singaporeans are also avid and adventurous travellers, with 85% of respondents planning to travel this holiday season. Among those who plan to travel, 88% want to travel somewhere new this holiday season and 73% are prioritising travel more this holiday season compared to other years.

Travel is mostly a shared experience

For those planning to travel, the top three groups they plan to travel with are family (65%), significant other (35%) and friends (22%). Only 10% say they plan to travel solo this holiday season.

When visiting friends and family for the holidays, 49% prefer to stay at short-term rentals, and 33% stay with the friends and family, and 18% have no preference.

Singaporeans are savvy travellers

While 87% of travellers are willing to pay more for a convenient and enjoyable experience, they use a variety of strategies to maximize the value of their travel expenses. The top three strategies to this are choosing to travel during off-peak days (76%), using travel credit card points or airline miles (66%), and opting out of airline seat selection (52%).

Mr Marlin Brown, Singapore Country Manager of American Express said, "At American Express, we understand that today's travellers seek both convenience and value. With our comprehensive travel benefits—such as earning Membership Rewards points and redeeming them for airline tickets or accessing exclusive perks with our partner airlines and hotels—we are committed to helping Card Members in Singapore unlock premium experiences
year-round."

American Express provides Card Members with exceptional travel access and benefits worth over S$2,000 with The Platinum Card. Benefits include unlimited complimentary airport lounge access at over 1,400+ airport lounges through its Global Lounge Collection and exclusive perks like late check-out and experience credits at 2,500 curated hotels around the world via Fine Hotels + Resorts and The Hotel Collection, and more.

When booking travel for the holidays, Singaporeans tend to look at online travel agencies (52%) first, followed by general online search (38%) and professional travel agents (8%).

More info on the global Amex Trendex available at the Amex newsroom. 

###

WHAT IS THE AMEX TRENDEX?

The Amex Trendex is a trend index that tracks how consumers, small businesses, and retailers are feeling about spending, saving, traveling and more. The survey does not represent Amex customer spending data or trends.

AMEX TRENDEX METHODOLOGY

*This poll was conducted between June 21 – July 17, 2024 among a sample of: 2002 US Adults, 1009 Japan Adults, 1006 Singapore Adults, 1004 UK Adults, 1003 Australia Adults, 1002 Germany Adults, 1002 Italy Adults, 1002 Mexico Adults, 1001 India Adults, 1001 Spain Adults, 1000 Canada Adults, 1000 France Adults and 501 Hong Kong Adults, who have at least a US$50k+ income equivalent and typically travel at least once a year. The interviews were conducted online. Results from the full survey have a margin of error of plus or minus 2-4 percentage points. Some geographies may be weighted with fewer variables depending on local census data availability.

The holiday season is defined as the Christmas and New Year period between November 2024 and January 2025 in Singapore.

ABOUT AMERICAN EXPRESS

American Express is a globally integrated payments company, providing customers with access to products, insights and experiences that enrich lives and build business success. Learn more at americanexpress.com.sg and connect with us on facebook.com/americanexpresssingapore, instagram.com/americanexpress, X.com/americanexpress, linkedin.com/company/american-express and youtube.com/americanexpress.

Key links to products, services and corporate sustainability information: personal cards, business cards and services, travel services, gift cards, prepaid cards, merchant services, Business Blueprint, Resy, corporate card, business travel, diversity and inclusion, corporate sustainability and Environmental, Social, and Governance reports. 

SOURCE American Express