Families have been reunited at Australian airports after borders reopened to fully-vaccinated Singaporean travellers.
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There were hugs, kisses and tears as Singaporean travellers embraced their family and friends after the first flights from the city-state touched down at Sydney and Melbourne Airports on Sunday, November 21.
Promotional staff cheered on arrivals with 'welcome' signs and gave out plush koalas while a live band played at Sydney Airport.
There were similar scenes at Melbourne Airport, although arrivals received a plush fairy penguin instead of a koala.
Singaporean travellers can currently travel to NSW, Victoria and the ACT and no longer have to spend 14 days in hotel quarantine when they arrive.
Only fully-vaccinated Singaporeans who travel from Singapore and return a negative PCR test taken within 72 hours of departure can enter the country.
A similar arrangement is in place with New Zealand with fully vaccinated eligible visa holders and citizens from Japan and South Korea set to be able to travel to Australia from December 1.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison said it is in the "national interest" to welcome travellers from Singapore, Japan and South Korea as they are "all very important tourist markets for Australia" on Monday.
"If we're able to move on international visitors, which we are already doing in relation to Korea, Japan and Singapore, that's an important first step," Mr Morrison said.
"We're welcoming them back with open arms and whether we can extend that to others over the course of between now and the end of the year, well, we'll look very carefully at that. That is our predisposition. But we will act cautiously, take the best advice and make those decisions when we can."
A $1.5billion tourism market
Singaporean travellers spent $1.53 billion in Australia in 2019, of which $837 million was of which $837 million was spent by leisure travellers alone.
On average they spend $2,624 per trip and $269 per night, making them the second highest market after the US.
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Tourism Australia is targeting Singaporean travellers with a $4 million 'Yours to Explore' advertising campaign across social media, TV, radio, cinema and print, which will run until June 2022.
One 30-second video advertisement highlights Australia's cities, beaches, natural wonders and wildlife before inviting Singaporeans to "get ready to say 'G'day' because Australia is yours to explore".
Tourism Australia Managing Director Phillipa Harrison said: "Quarantine-free travel between our two countries is also an important step in rebuilding international tourism to Australia, and also provides a framework for the resumption of inbound travel from other key international markets in time."
"We are inviting Singaporeans to take the opportunity to relax, reconnect with loved ones, and discover - or perhaps rediscover - some of the lesser-known parts of Australia that make us such an incredible holiday destination," Ms Harrison said.
Singaporeans made up five per cent of all international arrivals to Australia in 2019, making them the sixth largest source market for international visitation and seventh most valuable for spend.
Travellers from Singapore spend on average eight nights holidaying in Australia, of which 44 per cent are spent in regional areas, making them a huge boon to rural economies.
How Australians can travel to Singapore
Australians must be fully-vaccinated for at least two weeks and have been in Australia for two weeks before travelling to Singapore.
To prove they have been vaccinated, travellers must also get an international vaccination certificate before their flight, which can be obtained from your online Medicare online account via the myGov website.
Alternatively, the certificate can also be retrieved from the Express Plus Medicare mobile app on smartphones.
Travellers can then apply for a Vaccinated Travel Pass (VTP) to enter Singapore as a short-term visitor under the Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL).
Once this has been done, Australian travellers can book their flights and travel to the sovereign island city-state.
Australia does not have pre-departure testing requirements for people leaving the country.
However, Australian travellers have to take a COVID-19 (PCR) test on-arrival at Singapore airport and remain in isolation until a negative result is received.
For more information on how to travel to Singapore, visit the Smartraveler website.