Singapore wins at the 2009 Seoul Tourism Awards
“Best Sightseeing City in Asia-Pacific” and
“Best Website of City Promotion” awarded

Singapore, 4 June 2009 – The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) was awarded the “Best Sightseeing City in Asia-Pacific” and the “Best Website of City Promotion in Asia-Pacific” in the 2009 Seoul Tourism Awards held today. “We are very honoured to be the recipient of these two prestigious awards in acknowledgement of our attractive tourism product offerings and quality infrastructure as well as our effective online marketing efforts through our "visitsingapore.com." site. These accolades attest to our achievements in the Asia- Pacific region and we are encouraged to continue building on the strengths of our product appeal and marketing reach in the global arena. We would like to thank the people of Seoul in making this recognition possible and, on behalf of the Singapore Tourism Board and the people of Singapore, I would also like to take this opportunity to always warmly welcome our Korean friends to Singapore,” said Mr Ken Low, Assistant Chief Executive, Marketing Group, STB.

According to the organisers, Singapore’s growth in visitor arrivals; tourism products and infrastructure; active MICE industry; and global recognition by major awards are amongst the key factors contributing to the country’s win as “Best Sightseeing City in Asia-Pacific”.

The “Best Website of City Tourism Promotion in Asia-Pacific” was awarded to the visitsingapore.com online portal based on high external awareness, variety of content and its strong base of subscribers. Other factors include its strong visual impression and originality coupled with a convenient and user-friendly interface with a choice of 16 different languages.

“The awards are a good validation of the website we have developed for the Korean audience. Our Korean website includes downloadable e-brochures, pictures and video clips of popular Korean celebrities enjoying Singapore and even a moderated web community where interested surfers can ask questions
about Singapore and interact with each other. We are delighted to have received this recognition and will continue to improve on our web offerings, to increase visibility and knowledge of Singapore's destination brand,” said Mr Paul Tan, Regional Director, North Asia, STB.

The Seoul Tourism Awards is a platform for recognising the best of urban tourism service promotion in the Asia-Pacific region. Award winners are selected through a three-stage process consisting of industry expert recommendations and public voting, selection by a Judgment Subcommittee, followed by selection by the Merits Judgment Committee based on personal interviews and possible onsite inspection.